Dee Spagnuolo

Dee Spagnuolo

Partner She / Her / Hers
Philadelphia

Dee Spagnuolo has 20 years of experience representing companies and individuals in a wide range of internal investigations in educational, nonprofit, and corporate settings, as well as compliance and regulatory matters. Dee is the Leader of the firm's Title IX Team and is a Co-Leader of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Counseling Team. Dee also serves as Ballard Spahr's Partner in Charge of Attorney Career Advancement and a member of the Executive Team of the firm's Management Committee.

Dee's practice focuses on the institutional response to sexual misconduct. Domestic and international clients have included educational institutions, sports governing bodies, corporations, nonprofit organizations, and religious institutions. She was one of the lead Ballard Spahr attorneys conducting a review of cases and internal procedures for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia following a grand jury indictment of several priests accused of sexual abuse. Dee has extensive experience managing internal investigations involving sexual violence under Title IX and state and federal law, including interdisciplinary teams of forensic and crisis management professionals, communications with law enforcement, disciplinary proceedings, reporting to boards and governance committees, and the interplay between civil and criminal proceedings in the area of sexual misconduct. She also has particular expertise in advising athletic national governing bodies with respect to sexual misconduct investigations and related compliance with policies and procedures under the U.S. Center for SafeSport.

Experience 

Representative Matters

  • Advises educational institutions on their obligations under Title IX and Title VI, including policy and training development, and implementation of the same
  • Conducts internal investigations of alleged sexual misconduct, child abuse, and civil rights violations in a wide range of settings
  • Collaborates with communications and crisis management firms in high-profile matters
  • Counsels organizations in the development and implementation of policies, practices, and training programs relating to sexual misconduct, healthy boundaries, and SafeSport compliance
  • Advises corporations on their diversity and inclusion policies and practices

Professional Highlights

Judicial Clerkships

Hon. R. Barclay Surrick, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 2003-2004

Professional Activities

American Bar Association

Pennsylvania Bar Association

National Association of College and University Attorneys

Recognition & Accomplishments

Inducted into the Bowdoin College Athletic Hall of Honor, 2023

Recognized on Metro Philadelphia's 'Power Women' List, 2022

National Law Journal, "Trailblazer," 2021

Speaking Engagements

Panelist, “SCOTUS’s Affirmative Action Ruling and Its Boardroom Impact,” National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Philadelphia Chapter, December 8, 2023

Panelist, “How the U.S. Supreme Court’s Decision in College Admissions Could Impact Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Programs in Financial Institutions,” Ballard Spahr Webinar, September 13, 2023

Panelist, “Is DEI at Risk? Considerations on the U.S. Supreme Court Ruling Against Affirmative Action Programs,” Ballard Spahr Podcast, July 11, 2023

Board Memberships & Community Service

Vice Chair, Bowdoin College Board of Trustees

Publications

Co-author, "Complying with the Diversity & Inclusion Standards of Section 342 of Dodd-Frank Through Sponsorship Programs: Key Considerations for Development and Implementation," Mortgage Compliance Magazine, November 16, 2017

Co-author, "Getting with the Program: Tackling Section 342," Mortgage Compliance Magazine, November 1, 2016  

Co-author, "Laying the Groundwork: Creating a Complaint Section 342 Program," Mortgage Compliance Magazine, February 4, 2015 

Credentials 

Education

University of Pennsylvania Law School (J.D. 2003)
Class President; Legal Writing Fellow; Editor-in-Chief, Journal of International Economic Law

Bowdoin College (A.B. 1996)
Captain of the Varsity Field Hockey, Women's Ice Hockey, and Softball teams; All-American Honors in Field Hockey

Languages

Non-native fluency in Spanish; conversational in Italian

Admissions

Pennsylvania

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit