Overview
Patricia (Patti) A. Harris, Special Counsel at Zetlin & De Chiara LLP, provides legal and business counsel to architects and engineers across the country. A serial entrepreneur, Ms. Harris is the founder and CEO of Licensesure, which provides business and licensing compliance services to design professionals. From 2000 to 2013, she served as the Managing Partner of Zetlin and De Chiara. Ms. Harris started her career as a corporate attorney with two New York City law firms and her legal practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, business organization and management issues, and licensing issues.
Ms. Harris is very active in design industry organizations. She is Past-President and a member of the Board of the Global Design Alliance. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees and serves as General Counsel of the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, having served as Board Chair in 2015. Ms. Harris is also a member of ExComm. She serves as General Counsel to the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). In 2012, she served on the Mayor's Task Force for Rebuilding New York City.
She speaks and writes about business organization and professional licensing to industry organizations such as the AIA and ACEC.
Ms. Harris has been recognized for her leadership by the Global Design Alliance which presented her with their Sutherland Award for service to the design industry. She is recognized in Super Lawyers' list of top rated attorneys. In 2024, Ms. Harris was selected to City & State New York’s 2024 “Fifty Over 50 – The Age Disruptors” list. This annual list honors some of the most accomplished individuals in New York who have achieved success and, as part of that, made New York City a better place.
Education
New York University, M.B.A, with distinction
New York University, J.D.
Pomona College, B.A.
Admissions
- New York
