Julia
C.
Tierney
JD
Leadership Role
Chief of Staff - Office of the Commissioner
Julia (Julie) Tierney, J.D. is the Chief of Staff of the FDA, overseeing the daily management of the agency and leading agency activities on major initiatives. In this role, she provides strategic direction to senior leadership to advance the FDA’s policy priorities and works closely with the leadership of all FDA product centers and field operations to support their implementation of agency policies. She also serves as the Acting Commissioner’s direct liaison to other executive agencies and organizations and engages across government on critical public health initiatives. Ms. Tierney also plays a key role in legislative engagement, communications and stakeholder outreach.
Most recently, Ms. Tierney was the Chief of Staff for the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER). In that capacity, she served as the principal advisor to CBER Center Director Peter Marks, M.D., and facilitated planning and implementation of CBER priorities. Ms. Tierney first joined CBER in early 2017 as a Senior Policy Advisor for Strategic Planning and Legislation.
From 2015 to 2016, Ms. Tierney was the FDA’s detailee to the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee as a Senior Health Policy Advisor. She joined the FDA in 2008, as an Associate Chief Counsel for Drugs in FDA’s Office of Chief Counsel, providing ongoing legal counsel to FDA leadership and program staff on drug and biologic-related legal issues.
Prior to working at the FDA, Ms. Tierney practiced food and drug law at private law firms. She received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and her undergraduate degree in Biology and History from Johns Hopkins University.