Paul Alp

Paul Alp’s practice lies at the intersection of aviation regulatory, legal, and technical issues, where clients require practical advice from a lawyer steeped in the business, operational, and regulatory environment, and who has close ties to regulators and industry leaders.

For more than two decades, Paul has represented and advised airlines, manufacturers, repair stations, on-demand operators, technology companies, insurers, commercial space companies, corporate flight departments, and uncrewed aircraft companies on international and domestic aviation and aerospace issues. He provides a full range of advice on compliance, operations, safety, risk management, licensing, certification, airworthiness, security, crisis preparation, and emergency response.

Paul focuses a substantial portion of his practice on investigations, enforcement actions, and advising on airworthiness. He works closely with technical experts to analyze nonconformances and develop corrective actions. He also has extensive experience supporting the certification and operational approval of innovative aircraft and aviation systems such as drones (UAS), urban air mobility, and advanced air mobility systems. Paul regularly advises on cutting-edge regulatory, operational, and commercial issues for emerging-technology companies under U.S. and European regulatory frameworks. He also advises on the licensing of commercial space launch systems and performs safety and compliance reviews for a variety of aviation companies. 

Paul has extensive experience in aviation safety and accident investigations. Other areas of focus include aviation-related transactions, due diligence, and contracts. Paul also has multi-faceted experience handling litigation and commercial arbitrations for aviation companies. He routinely advises on complex issues of international scope, including with respect to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards and compliance with requirements of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and other civil aviation authorities.

Industry leaders rely on Paul for comprehensive advice on strategy, compliance, safety, and risk management. Paul works with clients to identify, analyze, and mitigate risk, overcome certification challenges, and represent clients before domestic and international regulators.

Paul has defended enforcement actions and represented clients in numerous matters involving the FAA, EASA, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Department of Justice (DOJ), National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), and other agencies. He has also represented aviation clients in international arbitrations involving contract disputes and defended injury and wrongful death lawsuits arising from air accidents, including serving as national coordinating counsel for a major aviation insurer.

As senior counsel at The Boeing Company, Paul supported regulatory compliance and safety, and advised on all aspects of product certification and compliance. He worked closely with the engineering, quality, and safety organizations; defended investigations and enforcement actions; and interacted regularly with the FAA and other government agencies. He served as legal focal for the Boeing Commercial Airplanes safety management system and provided strategic advice on risk management in product certification.

With an insider’s perspective and operational, technical, and practical experience, Paul offers clients a unique and invaluable skill set.  He holds a commercial pilot certificate and has worked as a flight instructor. He also holds an LL.M. with a specialization in Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice, which dovetails with his DC-based regulatory practice.  In law school, he served as the Notes and Projects Editor of the George Washington Law Review.

Paul is the Adams and Reese Aviation and Aerospace Team Co-Leader and resident in the firm’s DC office. He is currently serving as an appointee to the Airman Certification Standards Working Group of the FAA’s Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee, and on the Advisory Committee to the ABA’s Forum on Air & Space Law, where he also chairs the Manufacturing, Maintenance, and Technology Committee. He frequently speaks and writes on issues of interest to the industry and provides training seminars to clients on a variety of compliance topics.

Paul is a co-author of the Adams and Reese Aviation and Aerospace Liftoff Blog.