Director's Bio

In September 2009, Miriam Nisbet became the first Director of the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the National Archives and Records Administration. OGIS is the new FOIA ombudsman and policy office created by the 2007 FOIA Amendments; the office will provide mediation services to resolve disputes between FOIA requesters and administrative agencies.

Miriam previously served for two years at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Paris as Director of the Information Society Division, in the Communication and Information Sector. Among the Division's responsibilities are the Information for All Programme and support for libraries and archives; promoting the use of information and communication technologies for education, science, culture and development; and facilitation of the follow-up to the World Summit on the Information Society, including Internet governance issues.

From 1999 to 2007, Miriam served as Legislative Counsel for the American Library Association in ALA's Washington Office. She worked primarily on copyright and other intellectual property issues raised by the digital information environment. She also provided advice on law and policy concerning access to government information and privacy. She represented the library community as a member of the U.S. delegation to The Hague Convention on Jurisdiction and Enforcement of Judgments.

From 1994 to 1999, Miriam was Special Counsel for Information Policy, National Archives and Records Administration. Prior to joining the National Archives in 1994, Miriam had served since 1982 as the Deputy Director of the Office of Information and Privacy, U.S. Department of Justice. An active member of the American Society of Access Professionals (ASAP), Miriam served as 1995 President of ASAP and as a member of its Board of Directors from 1993-96 and from 2000-02. She also served on the Board of Directors of AFFECT, Americans For Fair Electronic Commerce Transactions, a broad-based national coalition of industry leaders, libraries and consumer organizations dedicated to educating the public and policy makers about UCITA, the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act.

Miriam received a BA degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a JD degree from the University's School of Law. She is a member of the Bars of the District of Columbia and North Carolina. Miriam was elected in 2005 as a member of the American Law Institute.