Axogen hires successor general counsel

Nasdaq-listed Axogen has recruited Brad Ottinger as general counsel and chief compliance officer, effective June 1.

Ottinger succeeds Greg Freitag, who retired from his position as general counsel on Monday. Freitag will continue to serve as a member of the company’s board of directors and take on the role of special counsel during a transition period expected to run until October of this year.

Ottinger reports directly to Karen Zaderej, who is chair, CEO and president of Axogen. He is responsible for all legal and compliance activities at the Alachua, Florida-based company, which develops and markets surgical solutions for damage or discontinuity to peripheral nerves.

Ottinger was previously vice president, general counsel, chief administrative officer and secretary of MicroPort Orthopedics, which makes hip and knee implants. He had previously been vice president of legal, compliance and human resources at the company.

Before joining MicroPort, Ottinger was associate general counsel for Buckeye Technologies, where he provided legal services with a focus on corporate transactions.

‘Greg has been instrumental in Axogen’s success and we thank him for helping to build the company into the industry leader we are today,’ says Zaderej in a statement. ‘As CEO of our reverse merger partner LecTech, Greg joined Axogen’s executive team in 2011 and his leadership, informed insights and positive attitude have had a meaningful impact on our operations ever since. I am thankful we will continue to benefit from his thoughtful counsel as he remains a valued member of our board of directors.

‘We are excited to welcome Brad to our executive team. [H]is knowledge of corporate compliance and experience leading medtech legal teams will be valuable as we continue to grow both our business and the nerve repair market. Brad’s skills will be a great complement and addition to the breadth of knowledge and experience within our leadership team.’