Derek Owens

Derek Owens is the chief legal officer and general counsel of Caterpillar Inc. He is responsible for Law, Security & Public Policy, which includes Global Legal Services, Compliance, Global Trade, Global Security and Global Government and Corporate Affairs.

Owens joined Caterpillar in 2019 as associate general counsel, litigation & investigations, after 15 years of increasing responsibility at the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Department of Justice, where he last served as a Deputy Chief. In 2021, Owens assumed the position of deputy general counsel for the Legal Services Division. In that role, he led the enterprise-wide internal investigations and tax and litigation matters. In addition to those duties, in 2022, he oversaw and provided legal guidance for commercial and transactional matters for Services, Distribution & Digital and led the legal HR team.

Owens earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and his juris doctorate from Santa Clara University School of Law. He is also a graduate of Caterpillar's Executive Leadership Program in partnership with Duke University.