marybeth peters (born june 12, 1939 in pawtucket, rhode island) is an american attorney who served as the 11th united states register of copyrights from august 7, 1994 to december 31, 2010. prior to serving as register, peters held the positions of policy planning adviser to the register, acting general counsel of the copyright office and as chief of both the examining division and the information and reference divisions. in addition to over 40 years of service to the copyright office, peters served as a consultant on copyright law to the world intellectual property organization in geneva, switzerland (1989–1990). she obtained her b.s. degree from rhode island college in 1961 and her j.d., with honors, from the george washington university law school in 1971.