Over three days, speakers will help attendees increase their professional knowledge by learning the nuts and bolts of trade policy directly from career trade policy professionals from across government, industry, and law.

Each part will highlight a different aspect of U.S. and international trade law and policy.

Friday, October 3, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM (US/Eastern)

Monday, October 6, 9:00 AM – 12:15 PM (US/Eastern)

Tuesday, October 7, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM (US/Eastern)

Tickets and Registration:

For group rates (3 or more ticket purchases), email Maya Ghazi (mghazi@wita.org) to receive a special rate.

To get WITA member pricing, click here.

Individual bundles available: $50-100/part (Must be a WITA Member)

2025 Curriculum and Confirmed Speakers

Part 1: Friday, October 3

9:00 AM – 12:00 PM ET

9:00 AM ET: Trade Law Primer (Sections 122, 232, 301, 338, IEEPA and update on legal challenges)

Kathleen Claussen, Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center; former Associate General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative 

Jeff Gerrish, Partner, Schagrin Associates; former Deputy U.S. Trade Representative for Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Industrial Competitiveness, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative 

Moderator: Mike Smart, Managing Director, Rock Creek Global Advisors; former Director for International Trade and Investment, National Security Council, The White House; former Trade Counsel, Democratic Staff, U.S. Senate Committee on Finance

10:00 AM ET: The New Dynamics in Trade Policy in the Executive Branch and the Interagency Process in the Trump Administration

Kelly Ann Shaw, Partner, Akin; former Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economic Affairs and Deputy Director, National Economic Council; former Assistant General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Everett Eissenstat, Partner, Public Policy Practice Group, Squire Patton Boggs; former Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economic Affairs and Deputy Director, National Economic Council; former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for the Americas, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Moderator: Kate Kalutkiewicz, Senior Managing Director, McLarty Associates; former Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for International Trade, National Economic Council; former Director for European Affairs, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

11:00 AM ET: The Congressional Role in Trade Policymaking

Nasim Fussell, Vice President of Trade and International, Business Roundtable; former Chief Trade Counsel, U.S. Senate Finance Committee; and a former Trade Counsel on the House Ways & Means Committee

Sally Laing, Partner, Akin; former Chief International Trade Counsel, U.S. Senate Committee on Finance

Moderator: Paul DeLaney, III, Senior Vice President, Head of Washington Office and Government Relations, SK Americas; former International Trade Counsel, U.S. Senate Committee on Finance; former Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Part 2: Monday October 6

9:00 AM – 12:15 PM ET

9:00 AM ET: AD/CVD/Safeguards – Role ITC and Commerce

Ryan Majerus, Partner, King & Spalding; former Acting Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration

Rhonda Schmidtlein, Partner, WilmerHale; former Chair and Commissioner, U.S. International Trade Commission

Moderator: Dominic L. Bianchi, Shareholder, Polsinelli; former General Counsel, U.S. International Trade Commission

9:45 AM ET: USTR Role in Monitoring and Enforcement

Catherine H. Gibson, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Monitoring & Enforcement, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; former Assistant General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Nathaniel Halvorson, Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Monitoring & Enforcement, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; former Senior Legal Advisor for the U.S. Mission to the WTO, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Moderator: Tom Beline, Partner, Cassidy Levy Kent; former Office of the Chief Counsel for Enforcement and Compliance, U.S. Department of Commerce

10:30 AM ET: Customs and Border Protection

Shannon Fura, Founding Partner, Page Fura, P.C.; Immediate Past Chair of the National Association of Foreign Trade Zones

Felicia Pullam, Senior Director, Geo-Commerce, APCO; former Executive Director, Office of Trade Relations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Moderator: John Pickel, Vice President, International Supply Chain Policy, NFTC; former Principal Director, U.S. Department of Homeland Security; and former Trade Counselor, U.S. Customs and Border Protection

11:15 AM ET: Export Controls, Sanctions, and Investment Controls

David Lim, Partner, White & Case LLP; former Co-Director, Task Force KleptoCapture, U.S. Department of Justice; former Trial Attorney, Counterintelligence & Export Control Section, U.S. Department of Justice

Kevin Wolf, Partner, Akin; former Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration, Bureau of Industry and Security, U.S. Department of Commerce

Moderator: Timothy Keeler, Partner, Co-Leader of International Trade, Mayer Brown; former Chief of Staff, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; former Deputy to the Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Legislative Affairs

Part 3: Tuesday, October 7

9:00 AM – 12:00 PM ET

9:00 AM ET: U.S. Trade Update – Ongoing Negotiations and Tariffs

Peter Harrell, Non-Resident Fellow, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace ; former Senior Director for International Economics and Competitiveness, National Security Council; Deputy Assistant Secretary, Counter Threat Finance and Sanctions, U.S. Department of State

Brian Pomper, Partner, Akin; former Chief  International Trade Counsel, U.S. Senate Finance Committee

Stephen Vaughn, Partner, King & Spalding; former General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Moderator: Nicole Bivens Collinson, Managing Principal, Operating Committee, International Trade & Government Relations Practice Leader, Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A.

10:00 AM ET: WITA International/Trade Around the World – Global Trade Initiatives

Angela Ellard, former Deputy Director-General, World Trade Organization (WTO)

Deborah Elms, Head of Trade Policy, Hinrich Foundation, former Founder and Executive Director, Asian Trade Centre

Chris Horseman, Deputy Editor, Borderlex

Florizelle Liser, President and CEO, Corporate Council on Africa; former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Africa, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Moderator: Kellie Meiman Hock, Senior Counselor, McLarty Associates; former Director of Brazil and the Southern Cone, Office U.S. Trade Representative

11:00 AM ET: USMCA 6-Year Review – Status Update – Review Process

Patrick Childress, Partner, Holland & Knight; former Assistant General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Thea Lee, Distinguished Visiting Practitioner, American University; former Deputy Undersecretary for International Labor Affairs, Department of Labor

Greta Peisch, Partner, Wiley Rein LLP; former General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; former International Trade Counsel, Senate Finance Committee

Moderator: Sarah Stewart, CEO and Executive Director, Silverado Policy Accelerator; former Assistant Deputy U.S. Trade Representative for Environment and Natural Resources, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative

Speaker Biographies

Tom Beline is a partner in Cassidy Levy Kent. Tom identifies creative ways for clients to benefit from import regulatory compliance and policy, trade remedies, and international trade litigation.

Tom’s representative experience involves appearing as lead counsel for clients in various and wide-ranging industries before the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. International Trade Commission, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the U.S. Court of International Trade, and United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) binational panels. Tom regularly advises clients on compliance with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and navigating the dispute settlement process. Tom regularly provides counsel to companies on complying with, and benefiting from, trade and customs regulation before U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Tom’s work includes prosecuting and defending trade actions in the United States and abroad, and has litigated trade issues in bankruptcy law and reverse Qui Tam actions. In addition to this work, Tom has experience counseling clients in navigating U.S. trade restrictions, including in export controls, anti-boycott, economic sanctions, and anticorruption laws.

Tom has been appointed by the chief judge of the U.S. Court of International Trade to serve as a member of the Court’s Rules Advisory Committee. Tom has also appeared as a frequent speaker on international trade topics. Tom is an adjunct professor of law at the University of Pittsburgh.

Dominic L. Bianchi is an international trade lawyer with extensive experience as the former General Counsel of the U.S. International Trade Commission and several years at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. This background shapes his legal and strategic counsel on international trade policy to support companies in intellectual property theft, unfair trade practices or regulatory challenges.

Dominic’s practice covers all facets of unfair trade litigation and trade remedy advocacy. With a deep understanding of the complexities of trade law, he represents clients in high-stakes disputes and provides strategic guidance on navigating regulatory challenges. Dominic’s practice includes advising on trade remedy actions, ensuring compliance with export control regulations and managing the implications of economic sanctions.

Dominic has extensive experience as general counsel, lawyer and congressional liaison. During his decade as general counsel, he successfully managed the ITC’s complex litigation before U.S. courts and international dispute settlement tribunals, building an agency affirmance rate nearing 90 percent before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and provided guidance to the commission in investigations involving allegations of patent, trademark and copyright infringement, antidumping and countervailing duty and global safeguard investigations under the Trade Act of 1974. Prior to serving at the ITC, he served both Ambassadors Michael Kantor and Charlene Barshefsky as the Acting Assistant USTR for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison and Congressional Relations Specialist. Through his extensive experience, Dominic helps clients effectively address legal and regulatory issues in a rapidly evolving global trade environment.

Nicole Bivens Collinson is a Managing Principal, Operating Committee, and International Trade and Government Relations Practice Leader with Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A. She is located in the Washington, D.C., office. Nicole is a commentator on trade matters on MSNBC, NPR, and BBC the producer of the Two Minutes in Trade podcast.

Nicole has nearly 40 years of experience in government, public affairs, and lobbying. She has drafted and guided the successful implementation of several pieces of key international trade legislation positively affecting the bottom line of many U.S. companies. Clients have saved millions of dollars through the successful drafting, guidance, and passage of legislation that reduces or eliminates duties — crafting creative measures to benefit clients such as blocking changes to the first sale doctrine, miscellaneous tariff bills, specific trade preference legislation, the Generalized System of Preferences, etc. Such a track record demonstrates her ability to effectively move your agenda forward.

Nicole has been very effective in assisting clients in finding options – through exclusion or other tariff mitigation strategies – to reduce duty liability for goods subject to section 301 or section 232 duties. In addition, she is a leader on the firm’s initiatives to address forced labor concerns via supply chain reviews, due diligence strategies, and proactive remediation to prevent the importation of any goods that may violate section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 for goods made with forced labor.

Nicole prepares countries, companies, and associations for negotiations with the United States on free trade agreements, trade and investment agreements, labor disputes, and preferential trade programs. She is well-known for her ability to foster dialogue among a diverse set of stakeholders to resolve complex issues in trade policy making and implementation. She also works directly with U.S. multinational corporations and associations, as well as foreign companies, associations, and government agencies, to clearly represent their positions in Washington. In doing so she analyzes and monitors cross-cutting trade issues, including labor, the environment, food safety, customs regulations, international development, and others, and helps build strong coalitions to advocate for change.

Further, her work representing clients before Congress has earned her a well-respected position among politicians involved in international and business affairs. She is a well-known international trade authority in Washington, regularly called upon by members of Congress and the administration to help explain complex trade programs. Her decades of work with the House Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce, Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security committees and the Senate Finance; Commerce, Science and Transportation; Foreign Relations; and Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committees has established deep and lasting relations with members of Congress and their staffs.

Prior to joining ST&R Nicole served as assistant chief negotiator for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, responsible for the negotiation of bilateral agreements with Latin America, Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, the Sub-Continent, and Africa. She also served as a country specialist in the International Trade Administration at the Department of Commerce, where she was responsible for the preparation of negotiations on specific topics between the U.S. and Latin America, Eastern Europe, China, and Hong Kong as well as the administration of complex textile agreements.

Nicole holds a master’s degree in international relations from The George Washington University and a triple bachelor’s degree in political science, European studies, and French from Georgetown College. She also studied at the Université de Caen in France. She is past chair of the Women in International Trade Charitable Trust, past president of Women in International Trade, an advisory board member of America’s TradePolicy.com, treasurer and board member of the Washington International Trade Association, and a member of the Washington International Trade Association Foundation and Women in Government Relations. She serves on the board of trustees for Georgetown College and is the past executive director for the U.S. Hosiery Manufacturers Coalition, the U.S. Apparel Industry Coalition, and the U.S. Sock Distributors Coalition. She is conversant in both French and Spanish.

Patrick Childress is an international trade and disputes attorney in Holland & Knight’s Washington, D.C., office.

Patrick focuses on international trade policy and high-stakes international disputes. He advises corporations, governments and other stakeholders around the world on issues related to the evolving tariff landscape, trade-related enforcement actions, government investigations and treaty negotiations. Patrick draws on his extensive experience in this area as a co-leader of Holland & Knight’s USMCA Team assisting clients in connection with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and its upcoming renegotiation. He also represents corporate and sovereign clients in commercial and investment treaty arbitration proceedings.

Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Patrick represented the United States in trade-related matters during both Trump Administrations and the Biden Administration as an attorney at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). During his time in government, Patrick advised senior administration officials, led U.S. government delegations negotiating with foreign trading partners and worked with corporate stakeholders across an array of industries on trade-related issues. Patrick handled a broad portfolio of trade law and policy issues, including foreign investment, digital trade, climate and environment, and trade in automotives. He also served as USTR’s lead attorney for regional matters involving Canada, Mexico and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

Patrick also has deep experience in international arbitration. He has represented corporate clients and sovereign governments in investor-state and commercial arbitrations around the world. Six of these arbitrations involved claims in excess of $1 billion.

Patrick’s commentary on international trade law and policy has been quoted in leading publications such as CNN Business, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Politico, ABC News and other outlets. He also has authored book chapters and journal articles, taught classes to foreign government officials at the International Law Institute, and spoken at Harvard Law School, Columbia Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, the American Society of International Law and other venues.

Before his time as a government official, Patrick was an attorney at large global law firms in New York and Washington, D.C.

Kathleen Claussen is Professor at Georgetown Law. Her work has appeared in the Yale Law Journal, the Stanford Law Review, the Columbia Law Review, the University of Chicago Law Review, and the Virginia Law Review, among others, as well as in leading international law journals. One of her articles on international investment disputes, The International Claims Trade, was awarded the Smit-Lowenfeld Prize in International Arbitration. Professor Claussen is also the co-founder of SAILS: the Consortium for the Study and Analysis of International Law Scholarship. She is the editor (with Geraldo Vidigal) of The Sustainability Revolution in Trade Agreements, forthcoming with Oxford University Press. She also co-edits an open-access textbook on international trade law together with Julian Arato, Joseph Weiler, and Sungjoon Cho. Professor Claussen has also blogged at Lawfare, Just Security, the International Economic Law & Policy Blog, and Opinio Juris, and is regularly featured on or consulted as an expert for various media outlets such as the Wall Street Journal, Marketplace, Bloomberg, and the Financial Times.

Professor Claussen has served as an arbitrator, as counsel, or as counsel to the tribunal in more than a dozen international trade and investment cases. She has been named to three arbitration rosters to serve as panel chair or panel member in state-to-state disputes. She is also regularly called upon to testify as an expert before legislative and independent review boards. In 2021-2022, she co-authored a study commissioned by the Administrative Conference of the United States on alternative dispute resolution in federal agency programs.

Professor Claussen has served as a visiting faculty member or invited researcher at numerous institutions around the world, including Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, the University of Cambridge Lauterpacht Centre for International Law where she was a Brandon Fellow, the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, the iCourts Center of Excellence at the University of Copenhagen, the George C. Marshall Center for Security Studies, the University of Zurich and Collegium Helveticum, and the World Trade Institute. Prior to joining the Georgetown faculty in 2023, she was a member of the faculty at the University of Miami School of Law for five years.

Professor Claussen holds several leadership positions within international law and arbitration professional associations. In 2021, she was appointed co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of International Economic Law. Her other recent governance appointments include the American Society of International Law (ASIL) International Economic Law Interest Group, the ASIL Executive Council & Executive Committee, and the Junior International Law Scholars Association. She is also a member of the Academic Council of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration and the Academic Forum on Investor-State Dispute settlement.

Before joining the academy, Professor Claussen was Associate General Counsel at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in the Executive Office of the President. There, she represented the United States in trade dispute proceedings and served as a legal advisor for the United States in international trade negotiations. She also worked on economic security issues on behalf of USTR at the National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force. In 2020-2021, she was an invited member of the Biden-Harris Transition Team, covering trade, commerce, and development agencies.

Earlier in her career, Professor Claussen was Legal Counsel at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague where she advised on disputes between countries, and on investment and commercial arbitrations involving countries and international organizations. She also clerked for the Honorable David F. Hamilton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. At Yale, Professor Claussen served on the board of the Yale Law Journal and was Editor-in-Chief of the Yale Journal of International Law. She was awarded the Jerome Sayles Hess Fund Prize for excellence in international law and the Howard M. Holtzmann Fellowship in international dispute resolution.

Paul H. DeLaney, III is Senior Vice President, Head of Government Relations at SK Americas. As Head of Government Relations at SK Americas, Paul leads a talented government relations, public affairs, and industry strategy team that supports SK’s semiconductor and advanced materials, energy and battery, digital technology, and life sciences operations, workforce, and investments across the United States. The team advocates on U.S. federal, state and local government policy issues impacting SK’s U.S. operations and workforce, international business, and supply chains.

Paul specializes in international trade, investment, tax, supply chain, regulatory and customs advocacy and policy development. Paul has worked extensively with Executive branch agencies across four Administrations, the U.S. Congress, foreign governments, business associations, think tanks, and a wide range of companies.

Prior to joining SK Americas, Paul was a Partner at the Kyle House Group and led the firm’s international commercial policy, advocacy, counseling and dispute resolution efforts. Prior to that, Paul was Vice President for Trade and International at the Business Roundtable (BRT) where he led BRT international policy efforts through Trade and International CEO Committee and with the company representatives of the Trade and International Coordinating Committee. He partnered with BRT leadership and Trade and International CEO Committee Chair to set strategy and engage BRT CEO Members on policy priorities and advocacy. He also served as International Trade Counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance where he assisted with Finance Committee hearings and legislative markups, drafted trade legislation and amendments, briefed Senators and staff, consulted with the Administration and the trade agencies, and met with stakeholders and foreign governments. Paul assisted in managing the Senate floor during the consideration of seven trade bills.

Prior to his Senate service, Paul served as a Senior Attorney for Trade and International Affairs at FedEx Express and advocated on trade policy and international regulatory issues before the U.S. and foreign governments, as well as with industry and trade associations. Paul also served as Deputy Chief of Staff to both U.S Trade Representative Rob Portman and Susan Schwab where he was integrally involved in strategic planning, agency operations and decision-making with senior political and career staff. Paul was the Office point of contact for the White House Staff Secretary, National Security Council, and National Economic Council staff to coordinate interagency actions.

Everett Eissenstat is a partner in the Public Policy Practice Group. Everett is one of the nation’s foremost global trade experts having served in senior positions in Congress, the Office of the US Trade Representative, the White House and a Fortune 50 company. He helps clients manage and mitigate geopolitical risk, influence international economic policy-making, and develop and execute successful international trade and investment strategies.

During a distinguished government career spanning over two decades, Everett served as deputy assistant to the president for international economic affairs and deputy director of the National Economic Council. Reporting to the president, the national security advisor and the director of the National Economic Council, he coordinated interagency policy development and implementation on international economic policy matters. He served as the president’s personal representative and principal negotiator to the G7, G20 and Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economic summits and led interagency preparations for all international summits.

Previously, Everett held key roles in the US House, Senate and the Office of the US Trade Representative. As the chief international trade counsel to the chairman of the US Senate Finance Committee (2011-2017 (under Sen. Orrin Hatch) and 2001-2006 (under Sen. Chuck Grassley)), Everett built and led professional international trade policy teams for two chairmen. He advised the chairmen on all international trade matters before the committee and coordinated the international trade work of the Finance Committee Republicans. His legislative responsibilities included Trade Promotion Authority, US Customs authorization, implementation of free trade agreements, preferential trade arrangements and sanctions policy. He was also responsible for the oversight of US government international trade agencies and international trade negotiations.

During his tenure as chief international trade counsel, Everett negotiated and helped gain congressional approval of the Trade Act of 2002 and the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015. He also gained approval of legislation implementing bilateral trade agreements with Australia, Chile, Colombia, Jordan, Morocco, Korea, Panama and Singapore, as well as the Dominican Republic-Central America-US-Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA).

As assistant US trade representative for the Americas (2006-2011), Everett led negotiations of comprehensive bilateral free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and Peru, as well as the entry into force of DR-CAFTA, a plurilateral trade agreement with Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. In addition, he led negotiation of the US-Brazil Framework Agreement, the US-Canada Government Procurement Agreement and the US-Uruguay Trade and Investment Framework Agreement.

Everett also served as legislative director for Rep. Jim Kolbe, where he advised the congressman on international trade matters, appropriations and foreign affairs. He also served as special assistant in the Office of the Western Hemisphere at the Office of the USTR. Everett also served as a member of the 2000 Presidential Transition Team for the Office of the US Trade Representative, the US Department of Commerce Office of Import Administration and the International Trade Commission.

Everett most recently served as chair of North America and global trade lead at a boutique global public relations consultancy firm. He was senior vice president at a multinational automotive manufacturer (2018-2021) reporting to the CEO and managing over 100 public policy professionals worldwide. He helped navigate a range of challenges, including labor relations, supply chain disruptions and the regulatory and compliance implications of transitioning from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles.

Angela Ellard served as WTO Deputy Director-General for four years. She was responsible for dispute settlement/reform, trade remedies, market access/trade facilitation, and ongoing negotiations on fisheries subsidies. She supervised the Secretariat’s facilitation of the successful conclusion of the 2012 Fisheries Subsidies Agreement. She also oversaw the WTO budget.

Previously, DDG Ellard had a distinguished 26-year career as Majority and Minority Chief Trade Counsel in the U.S. Congress. She achieved significant bipartisan trade policy outcomes with Congressional leaders and five Presidential administrations. She practiced law, focusing on trade litigation, policy, and legislation.

She is renowned for her expertise in trade and international economic policy, resolving trade barriers, and negotiating outcomes. She earned her J.D. cum laude/Tulane Law School, M.A. in Public Policy/Tulane, and B.A. summa cum laude/Tulane’s Newcomb College. She speaks and lectures worldwide and has received numerous awards for her contributions to trade law and policy.

Dr. Deborah Elms is Head of Trade Policy at the Hinrich Foundation in Singapore. Prior to joining the Foundation, she was the Executive Director and Founder of the Asian Trade Centre (ATC). She was also President of the Asia Business Trade Association (ABTA) and the Board Director of the Asian Trade Centre Foundation (ATCF).

Deborah serves on the board of the Trade and Investment Negotiation Adviser (TINA) at the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific (UNESCAP). She was on the International Advisory Council for APCO (2021-2023) and was a member of the International Technical Advisory Committee of the Global Trade Professionals Alliance and Chair of the Working Group on Trade Policy and Law. She was also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Trade and Investment Council for 2018-2020.

Prior to founding ATC/ATCF and the ABTA, she was head of the Temasek Foundation Centre for Trade & Negotiations (TFCTN) and Senior fellow of International Political Economy at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

Deborah received a PhD in political science from the University of Washington, an MA in International Relations from the University of Southern California, and bachelor’s degrees from Boston University.

She is the author of numerous articles, editor of several books, and regularly published the Talking Trade Blog. Deborah also routinely appears on television and in major newspapers and magazines around the world to comment on trade and economic issues. Deborah also makes frequent appearances at a range of global trade and economic workshops, conferences, capacity building sessions, and negotiations.

Shannon Fura is a founding partner in the international trade law firm of Page•Fura, P.C. With a background in import/export law, intellectual property and international affairs, Shannon offers clients the diverse background and skillset necessary to exercise compliance and ensure supply chain security in today’s global market.

Shannon brings more than 20 years of experience to her representation of clients in the international arena. Her counseling in the import area includes representing companies before U.S. Customs & Border Protection and other impacted federal agencies in Focused Assessments and other reviews of their import operations. In furtherance to that representation, Shannon works with clients in the establishment, enhancement and monitoring of compliance programs, and provides counsel on a myriad of specific issues including transfer pricing and customs valuation, tariff classification, country of origin determinations and marking requirements, tariff preference program/free trade agreement eligibility, trade relief and remedies, foreign-trade zones and duty drawback, and customs enforcement matters, including civil penalty actions, investigations, seizures and liquidated damages cases. In addition to this work, Shannon also actively represents companies in the area of border/supply chain security including developing and evaluating program qualifications under the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism/WCO SAFE Framework.

In the export arena, Shannon brings her extensive knowledge of the intricacies of U.S. export control laws to her representation of companies. Her work in this area extends to representation before the Bureau of Industry & Security, the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, the Office of Foreign Assets Control and the Bureau of the Census, and includes the development of comprehensive Export Management Systems as well as performing self-assessments of companies’ existing export compliance programs and policies. Besides conducting comprehensive reviews/program development, Shannon also provides advocacy for clients on individual commodity jurisdiction requests, export license applications, Technical Assistance Agreements/Manufacturing License Agreements, and deemed export and re-export controls and compliance. She also, where necessary, counsels clients on the submission of voluntary self disclosures and issues of export enforcement.

Nasim Fussell is Vice President of Trade and International at Business Roundtable, where she leads the organization’s efforts to advance policies that promote U.S. economic growth through international trade and investment.
Prior to joining Business Roundtable, Nasim was a Senior Vice President at a government relations and public affairs firm, where she led the organization’s International Trade practice.

Before that, Nasim held senior roles in both chambers of Congress. She served as Chief International Trade Counsel for the Senate Finance Committee under Chairman Chuck Grassley, and as Deputy Chief International Trade Counsel under Chairman Orrin Hatch. In the House, she was Trade Counsel for the Ways and Means Committee under Chairmen Brady, Ryan and Camp. Throughout her tenure on the Hill, Nasim contributed to major legislative initiatives including the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), Trade Promotion Authority, and customs modernization reforms, among others.

Nasim also brings private sector experience from her work as a partner at a global law firm, as well as in-house roles at multinational companies and a cross-sector trade association. She began her legal career at the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Nasim currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors for the Washington International Trade Association (WITA). She holds an LL.M. in International and Comparative Law from the George Washington University Law School, a J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law, and a B.A. in History from the University of Michigan.

Jeff Gerrish served as the Deputy U.S. Trade Representative for Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Industrial Competitiveness from 2018 to 2020.  In this role, he formulated and implemented U.S. trade policy for the regions and issues under his purview, led critically important trade negotiations, and developed and executed strategies to address trade barriers and unfair trade practices in countries around the world. Jeff served as the lead negotiator for the U.S.-China Economic and Trade Agreement and played a key role in the negotiation or renegotiation of several other major trade agreements, including the U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement, the U.S.-Japan Digital Trade Agreement, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, and the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement.  While at USTR, Jeff was responsible for issues relating to steel trade policy, and he led USTR’s efforts on the actions taken on imports of steel and aluminum under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.  From April 2018 to May 2019, Jeff also served as acting President and Chairman of the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

Jeff has extensive experience assisting companies in complex antidumping, countervailing duty, and safeguards cases and in other high-stakes trade disputes before the U.S. government and foreign governments and institutions.  He has litigated hundreds of cases before the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. International Trade Commission, U.S. Court of International Trade, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, North American Free Trade Agreement binational panels, and World Trade Organization dispute settlement panels.  In addition, Jeff has worked with clients on national security investigations under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 and in investigations into unfair trade policies and practices before the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.  He has achieved highly successful outcomes for clients in these matters in industries ranging from steel to geosynthetics. 

Another important part of Jeff’s practice is advising clients regarding trade policy issues before the U.S. Congress and administration.  He also works with clients in ongoing negotiations relating to international trade agreements.  He advises clients on how such negotiations may affect their interests and operations and helps them to develop and execute strategies for the negotiations.

Jeff is a frequent speaker on international trade topics.  He also was previously appointed (and reappointed) by the chief judge of the U.S. Court of International Trade to serve as a member of the court’s Rules Advisory Committee, and he served as co-chair of the International Trade Committee and a board member of the Customs and International Trade Bar Association. Jeff repeatedly has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America.

Peter Harrell is a Non-Resident fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He also serves as an attorney advising companies and investors on international legal, regulatory, and geopolitical risks. As a member of Carnegie’s American Statecraft program, Harrell’s research focuses on issues of U.S. domestic economic competitiveness, trade policy, and the use of economic tools in U.S. foreign policy.

From January 2021 through 2022, Peter served at the U.S. White House as Senior Director for International Economics, jointly appointed to the National Security Council and the National Economic Council. In that role, Peter co-led President Biden’s E.O. 14017 supply chain resilience agenda; worked on the global digital, 5G, and telecommunications strategies; spearheaded negotiations with the European Union on the U.S.-E.U. Data Privacy Framework; served as the White House representative to the CFIUS committee; and worked on U.S. sanctions and export controls towards Russia is response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Immediately prior to joining the White House, Peter served on the Biden-Harris Transition team from September 2020 to January 2021.

From 2015 to early 2021 Peter was an attorney in private practice and served as Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center for a New American Security. In those roles he advised U.S. and multinational companies on sanctions compliance and a range of geopolitical risks, and also published widely on public policy. His articles and op-eds appeared in publications including the Wall Street Journal, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Politico, and Lawfare, among other outlets. Peter has testified in front of multiple congressional committees, including, most recently, the House Financial Services Committee in February 2023.

From 2012 to 2014, Peter served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Counter Threat Finance and Sanctions in the State Department’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs. From 2009 to 2012 he served on the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff, where he was instrumental in developing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s economic statecraft agenda.

Earlier in his career, Peter served on President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign and as a reporter for Congressional Quarterly in Washington, DC.

Harrell is a magna cum laude graduate of Princeton University and holds a JD from the Yale Law School.

Kellie Meiman Hock is a Senior Counselor at McLarty Associates. She founded the firm’s trade and Brazil/Southern Cone practices, helping over one-hundred companies to pursue global opportunities and troubleshoot obstacles to market access since joining McLarty in March 2000. Prior to joining McLarty, she served for almost a decade as a US Foreign Service Officer at the Department of State, serving in Bogota, Colombia, and throughout Brazil in Porto Alegre, São Paulo, and Recife, as well as at the Office of the US Trade Representative in the Executive Office of the President. For over three decades, Kellie has worked on Latin America and on various aspects of trade, investment, and technology policy, helping companies to manage geopolitical uncertainty and industrial policy, from local content requirements to data localization and trade remedies. Kellie has been deeply engaged in stakeholder efforts to manage a dynamic global trade agenda and increased economic nationalism. She has also helped many companies to internationalize their public policy operations and to develop global expansion plans. She has lived and studied in Central America and Japan. Kellie is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Women’s Foreign Policy Group Leadership Council, and the Bretton Woods Committee. She is also on the Board of Directors for the Inter-American Dialogue. She often writes and speaks on policy matters related to trade/investment/industrial policy, Brazil, and Latin America. A native of Omaha, Nebraska, Kellie is a graduate of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. She fluently speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

Chris Horseman is a journalist and consultant with over 30 years of experience and a deep knowledge of EU, UK and global trade and agriculture policy issues.

Chris graduated from the University of Birmingham with a degree in modern languages before working for at the European Commission. Chris joined Informa in 1987, spending four years as Brussels correspondent for Agra Europe. He took up a senior editorial position in the business’s UK office in 1991, and was Editorial Director with Informa Agribusiness Intelligence between 2006 and 2017. His specialist areas include agricultural trade policy and the World Trade Organization, the Common Agricultural Policy and Brexit.

Kate Kalutkiewicz is Senior Managing Director at McLarty Associates, where she leads the McLarty trade practice and contributes to the firm’s Europe practice and McLarty Inbound. Kate has managed complex challenges around global trade, industrial, and investment policy for nearly two decades. Her experience spans roles in government, particularly in Europe and South America, where she honed her skills in negotiating complex international agreements and navigating the nuance around public-private sector interactions. Kate most recently served as Head of US Trade Policy for Amazon, where she advocated a broad range of international trade and economic issues with the US Government, touching several sectors, including retail, creative content production and distribution, cloud services, sustainable fleet, autos, and hardline manufacturing. Prior to that, Kate served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for International Trade at the National Economic Council, where she developed and led US trade policy initiatives. During her White House tenure, she led interagency teams responsible for the US G7 Presidency and US positions on supply chain resiliency and support for the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Before serving in the White House, Kate was the Senior Trade Representative at the US Mission to the European Union from 2016-2020. While in Brussels, she was the USTR’s primary interlocutor with the European Commission and Member State authorities responsible for trade. Before her time in Brussels, Kate held the role of USTR’s Director for European Affairs (2011-2016) and served as Associate Chief Negotiator for the US in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership negotiations. She began her career at USTR as its Director for Brazil and the Southern Cone (2007-2011), where she was the principal agency representative for implementing and managing US trade policy in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Paraguay. Prior to USTR, Kate was a legislative assistant in the office of Senator James Talent (R-MO), where she supported the Senator on issues related to trade, foreign policy, homeland security, immigration, and the judiciary.

Timothy Keeler is Partner and Co-Leader of International Trade at Mayer Brown. He joined Mayer Brown after a varied career in the US Government, serving at the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), the US Treasury Department (which chairs CFIUS), and the US Senate Finance Committee.

Timothy also advises and advocates for clients on high-profile International Trade law and policy, including investigations and tariff actions by the USTR under Sec. 301 of the Trade Act of 1974; safeguard investigations and tariff remedies by the International Trade Commission (ITC) and the USTR under Sec. 201 of the Trade Act of 1974; the consistency of various legal regimes – or proposed laws – with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and other international legal obligations; international trade negotiations in the WTO, Free Trade Agreements, and other arrangements; and WTO and other trade agreement litigation.

Timothy was previously the Chief of Staff in the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) from 2006 – 2009, where he oversaw implementation of US policy, strategy and negotiations involving all aspects of international trade and investment matters. He worked on a number of key issues including: climate change and trade; US and China relations; WTO negotiations and litigation; free trade agreement negotiations and implementation; and CFIUS decisions.

Before working for USTR, Timothy spent more than five years at the Treasury Department from 2001 – 2006. He joined the Office of Legislative Affairs in 2001 as a Deputy to the Assistant Secretary for International Issues, where he was responsible for Treasury’s legislative strategy on issues including CFIUS, foreign exchange rate policy testimony, appropriations for US funding of the World Bank, and US participation in the International Monetary Fund. He later managed the Office of Legislative Affairs from 2002 – 2006 and assisted on all policy and personnel issues in the Office. This included leading Treasury nominees through the US Senate confirmation process, and legislative strategy on Treasury Intelligence and Anti-Terrorist Financing matters.

Timothy also served on the Presidential Transition Team in 2000–2001 as a policy coordinator on export control and trade remedy policy, handling the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Export Administration (now called the Bureau of Industry and Security) and the International Trade Commission (ITC). Earlier in his career (1998-2000), Timothy served as a professional staff member for international trade on the US Senate Finance Committee under Chairman William V. Roth (R-DE).

In recognition of his government service, Timothy was awarded the USTR Distinguished Service Award, the Treasury Distinguished Service Award, and the Treasury Secretary’s Honor Award twice.

Timothy is a member of the Board of Directors of the Washington International Trade Association. He was also an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University in both the School of Law—co-teaching a course on US and WTO law, policy, and politics, and the School of Foreign Service.

Sally Laing is a Partner at Akin. Drawing on 15 years of executive branch, congressional and private practice experience, Sally advises clients on the intersection of international trade law and U.S. public policy. In this capacity, she guides clients through complex strategic decisions regarding regulatory compliance, supply chain resiliency and overcoming trade barriers. Leveraging experience as a senior government official, Sally is able to counsel clients on cutting-edge trade issues, industrial policy and other emerging challenges. 

Sally most recently served as Chief International Trade Counsel to Chair Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Senate Finance Democrats. In this capacity, Sally drafted, negotiated and shepherded the passage of significant trade legislation, including the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and Taiwan Agreement implementation bills. She also led Senate oversight of implementation of new customs requirements, including the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), and U.S. trade negotiations through high-level engagement with U.S. officials, foreign governments and stakeholders from Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Australia, Kenya, Taiwan and elsewhere. Sally also worked extensively with the Senate Finance Committee tax team and Senate leadership on the drafting, defending and passing of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

Prior to joining the staff of the Senate Finance Committee, Sally was Assistant General Counsel at USTR under both Democratic and Republican Administrations. In this role, Sally researched, developed and litigated several critical WTO disputes, including helping to develop the factual and legal basis for the last two significant U.S. WTO cases against China. She was also charged with drafting and negotiating portions of the USMCA agriculture and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) chapters, as well as product-specific annexes and side letters. During her time at USTR, Sally worked extensively with U.S. government agencies such as Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Department of Commerce (DOC), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of State.

Prior to serving in government, Sally was an associate at Akin, where she worked on trade policy, trade remedies and customs matters.

Thea Lee is a Distinguished Visiting Practitioner at American University School of International Service Department of Politics, Governance, and Economics. Previously she served as the Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor. She was the President of the Economic Policy Institute from 2017 to 2021. From 1997 to 2017, Lee worked at the AFL-CIO and served as deputy chief of staff, policy director, and chief international economist. She served on the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission from 2018 to 2020. Lee has also served on the State Department Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy, the Export-Import Bank Advisory Committee, and on the Boards of Directors of the National Bureau of Economic Research, the Congressional Progressive Caucus Center, the Center for International Policy, and the Coalition on Human Needs. She currently serves on the boards of the National Women’s Law Center, as well as the national advisory board of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.

David Lim is a partner in the Firm’s Global International Trade Practice, where he advises clients on a wide range of US regulatory compliance and enforcement issues related to economic sanctions, export controls, and national security matters. In particular, David advises sovereigns and companies operating in the financial services, technology, oil & gas, defense, semiconductor, biotechnology, manufacturing, transportation, and other sectors in navigating complex and cross-border issues arising from US economic sanctions and export controls. David’s practice specializes in conducting comprehensive internal investigations, performing compliance assessments and enhancements, and providing robust defense in regulatory enforcement actions.

Before joining White & Case, David served at the US Department of Justice (DOJ) in multiple senior roles, most recently as the Co-Director for Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing sanctions, export restrictions, and economic countermeasures against Russia. In this role, David coordinated with multiple US government agencies, including the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) on cross-border investigations. Prior to that, David was the inaugural National Coordinator of the Disruptive Technology Strike Force, a joint venture between the DOJ and Department of Commerce to leverage criminal, civil, and administrative enforcement tools to disrupt the unlawful theft and export of sensitive US technology.

In earlier roles, David was a Trial Attorney in the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section of the DOJ’s National Security Division (NSD), where he investigated and prosecuted federal crimes related to national security, including economic sanctions, export control, espionage, and trade secret theft. David also served as the Acting Deputy Chief for Export Control and Sanctions, where he oversaw all federal criminal cases involving export controls and sanctions nationwide.

Before joining the DOJ’s NSD, David served as Senior Counsel in the Office of the Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, where he advised on strategic issues related to national security and white-collar criminal investigations. Preceding David’s tenure at the DOJ, he was an Assistant District Attorney for the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.

David has extensive experience collaborating with US and foreign regulators on multijurisdictional investigations, including OFAC, FinCEN, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), the US Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), and the UK National Crime Agency (NCA).

David is well versed in matters involving questions under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA), the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and the Classified Information Procedures Act (CIPA), among others.

Florizelle Liser is the third President and CEO of CCA. Florizelle brings expertise and an extensive network on trade and Africa to her new role, along with a strong track record of working with the private sector to translate policy into action. She is the first woman to lead the Council since its founding in 1993. Florizelle joined CCA from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), where she was the Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Africa since 2003. At USTR, she led trade and investment policy towards 49 sub-Saharan African nations and oversaw implementation of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).Previously, Florizelle served as Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Industry, Market Access, and Telecommunications from 2000-2003. She also served as Senior Trade Policy Advisor in the Office of International Transportation and Trade at the Department of Transportation from 1987-2000; worked as a Director in USTR’s Office of GATT Affairs, and served as an Associate Fellow at the Overseas Development Council (ODC) from 1975-1980.Currently, Florizelle serves as a re-appointed member of the 2023-2024 Sub-Saharan Africa Advisory Committee for the Export-Import Bank (EXIM) where she previously served from 2019-2021. Florizelle also served as co-chair of the Advisory Council for the Millennium Challenge Corporation and has also served as a Board member for the Women in International Trade (WIIT). Florizelle holds a M.A. in International Economics from Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and a B.A. in International Relations and Political Science from Dickinson College.

Ryan Majerus is a Partner in the International Trade Team of King & Spalding. His practice covers trade remedies, trade policy and negotiations, trade agreement enforcement, import compliance, supply chains, and government procurement. He has particular experience in the steel, aluminum, automotive, agricultural, and energy industries. He recently performed the functions of the Assistant Secretary for Enforcement and Compliance at the U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration for over a year, serving as the decisionmaker for every AD/CVD duty imposed by the U.S. He also was the Senior Policy Advisor for Supply Chains at the White House National Economic Council under President Joe Biden, where he played a central role in U.S. industrial strategy.

Prior to his 4 years in political roles at Commerce and the White House, Ryan had a decade-long legal career in the federal government, serving as the Senior Counsel for Appellate And Supreme Court Litigation at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”); as Assistant General Counsel at the Office of the USTR under the first Trump Administration, where he litigated several disputes before the WTO involving U.S. trade remedies and government subsidies and was a lead on agriculture trade policy. He also was a trial attorney in the Civil Division of the DOJ, where he represented Commerce as lead counsel in dozens of trade remedies cases before the U.S. Court of International Trade and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and defended numerous agencies in government contracts and bid protest litigation before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and Federal Circuit.

Greta M. Peisch is a Partner at Wiley Rein. She brings nearly 15 years of experience in international trade matters. Most recently, she served as General Counsel for the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) where she was a primary legal advisor to the agency, including with respect to trade enforcement and trade agreement implementation and negotiations.

While at USTR, Greta led the USTR’s enforcement agenda, including World Trade Organization (WTO) and trade agreement dispute settlement and implementation of Sections 201 and 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

Greta negotiated the settlement of significant trade disputes, including a years-long dispute with the European Union regarding large civil aircraft; disputes related to the U.S. imposition of tariffs on steel and aluminum and the EU’s retaliatory tariffs; and a dispute with Canada related to a U.S. solar safeguard measure. In addition, she led the implementation of the first-ever reviews and panel request under the novel Rapid Response Labor Mechanism of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. She also oversaw negotiations related to Critical Minerals Agreements with Japan, the EU, and the United Kingdom and advised on legal issues in trade agreement negotiations and implementation, including with respect to the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and the U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st Century Trade.

Prior to her time at USTR, Greta was Senior International Trade Counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance. In this role, she developed policy positions and legislation concerning trade policy, including the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the drafting, passage, and implementation of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act, and the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill Act of 2018.

With additional experience involving digital trade, labor, and the environment, Greta is poised to help clients navigate all aspects of trade’s legal landscape.

John Pickel is Senior Director of International Supply Chain Policy at the National Foreign Trade Council, the leading business association dedicated solely to advancing the interests of U.S. companies in international commerce.

In this role, John sets strategic direction and executes efforts to promote efficient, resilient and stable supply chains. This includes advancing policies related to anticounterfeiting, product safety, environmental sustainability, human and labor rights, and preventing illicit trade. He also promotes the implementation of trade facilitation measures and customs best practices across government agencies and international organizations to increase predictability and enable compliance with U.S. trade laws.

John previously served as the Principal Director of Trade and Economic Competitiveness in the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of Strategy, Policy, and Plans (Policy), where he was a primary trade and supply chain policy advisor to agency leadership, served as the DHS representative to various interagency groups and processes, and led implementation of trade-related initiatives across DHS components.

Prior to joining DHS Policy, John served in various roles at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) over a decade. More recently, he was the Counsellor to the Commissioner for trade facilitation and enforcement matters. In addition to advising CBP executives on trade policy issues, John led engagement with senior administration officials, the trade community, and others to inform the development and implementation of CBP trade priorities. Earlier, John coordinated CBP Congressional Affairs efforts related to trade policy. In this role, he worked closely with Members of Congress and senior staff to shape legislation including the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (TFTEA) and Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act.

John has represented companies, nonprofit organizations, and cities before Congress and federal agencies at a government relations firm and worked in a leadership office in the U.S. House of Representatives.

John is a graduate of The George Washington University (B.A., Political Science).

Brian Pomper is a partner at Akin and serves as co-leader of the firm’s lobbying and public policy practice. He represents companies before Congress, the White House, and federal agencies on a wide range of public policy matters, including market access, investment, international trade disputes, intellectual property, international tax, and customs issues.

Brian formerly served as chief international trade counsel to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT). In that role, he advised Chairman Baucus and other members of the Senate Finance Committee on all aspects of the Committee’s international trade and economic agenda.

Felicia Pullam is a global expert on trade, investment, value chain sustainability and social impact, with more than 20 years of experience working with international companies on these mission critical issues. She brings that experience to her role as Senior Director, Geo-Commerce in APCO’s Washington office, where she leads APCO’s Center for Trade, Investment and Market Access.

Prior to joining APCO, Felicia was the executive director of the Office of Trade Relations at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which is CBP’s primary point of contact for private sector and stakeholder engagement. As an advisor to the commissioner, Felicia worked on a wide range of trade challenges, including tariffs and trade remedies, forced labor, de minimis reform and illicit trade.

Felicia has worked on bipartisan trade and investment from both the state and federal perspective: she has served in the Office of Delaware Governor Jack Markell, as well as at the Maryland Department of Commerce and the U.S. Department of Commerce. During the Obama administration, Felicia helped steer SelectUSA, a presidential initiative housed within Commerce, through a high-pressure start-up phase to promote the United States as the leading global destination for foreign direct investment. Felicia was then appointed to be the deputy assistant secretary for textiles, consumer goods and materials, where she managed three offices to analyze and implement trade policy covering a large swath of the global economy.

Outside of government service, Felicia served as the director of strategy at the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. Earlier in her career, she spent nearly a decade in China, leading the Asia regional corporate responsibility and sustainability practice for APCO, working closely with colleagues across greater China, India, and Southeast Asia. Felicia got her start as a Princeton in Asia Fellow, followed by a yearlong adventure as the tutor and translator for actress Zhang Ziyi. She graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University.

Rhonda Schmidtlein is a Partner at WilmerHale. A former Chair and Commissioner of the US International Trade Commission (ITC), she focuses her practice on the US trade remedy laws and Section 337 trade-related intellectual property disputes. With over 25 years of public-sector experience in international trade law and policy, she counsels clients engaging with the ITC, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), the US Department of Commerce, the US Department of Justice, US Customs and Border Protection and the courts.

During her time at the ITC, Rhonda served as the Chair from 2017 to 2018 and as a Commissioner from 2014 to 2025. As Chair, she managed all aspects of the agency including all substantive mission areas, interactions with USTR and Congress, budget formulation and execution, personnel and strategic planning. As Commissioner, she participated as a decisionmaker in more than 300 Section 337 determinations and more than 225 AD/CVD cases as well as four global safeguard investigations. Immediately before her appointment, she was a consulting expert to the World Bank on projects to strengthen audit and accounting regulation in emerging markets.

From 2003 to 2011, Rhonda served at the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) and was the Founding Director of the PCAOB’s Office of International Affairs, where she was responsible for the development and execution of the agency’s international rules and policies. She also led negotiating teams that reached agreements enabling PCAOB inspections and access to confidential information in 36 countries.

Prior to joining the PCAOB, Rhonda was an Associate General Counsel at USTR, where she represented the United States in disputes before the World Trade Organization and provided legal advice in connection with the negotiation of US Free Trade Agreements, including the US-Singapore FTA, US-Chile FTA, US-Australia FTA, US-CAFTA/DR FTA, US-Morocco FTA and US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement.

Rhonda also served as an Honors Program trial attorney for the Department of Justice in its Civil Division, where she was a lead attorney in dozens of trial-level cases involving challenges to US trade agencies’ antidumping and countervailing determinations, US customs regulations, financial services and government contracts.

Rhonda began her career as a law clerk for the Honorable Howard Sachs, then Chief Judge for the US District Court for the Western District of Missouri.

Kelly Ann Shaw is a partner in Akin’s lobbying & public policy practice. She is recognized as one of the world’s leading international trade, global economics and national security advisors.

Her practice focuses on the complex intersection of trade, supply chains and geopolitics. This includes tariff and customs issues, forced labor (UFLPA), national security measures, investment restrictions, World Trade Organization (WTO) litigation, as well as arctic, energy, global financial and industrial policies.

Kelly Ann spent a decade in government service, holding a number of high-profile and influential roles as a senior U.S. negotiator, litigator, diplomat and policy advisor. Most recently, she served as President Trump’s Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economic Affairs. She was one of the key architects of the administration’s trade, investment, energy and national security policies. Kelly Ann was also the United States’ lead negotiator (Sherpa) for the G7, G20 and APEC, and a key negotiator of the U.S.-China Phase One Deal, among others.

Prior to the White House, she served as Trade Counsel to the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee and Assistant General Counsel for USTR in Washington, D.C. and Geneva. Kelly Ann has represented the U.S. in more than 40 WTO disputes and served as a lead negotiator for several major U.S. trade negotiations.

Kelly Ann has been named one of Washington D.C.’s Most Influential People by the Washingtonian Magazine for four consecutive years (2022-2025), a Next Generation Partner by The Legal 500 and recognized as one of The Best Lawyers in America. She has testified multiple times before the U.S. Congress and has been a frequent media commentator for outlets around the world.

She also serves as an adjunct professor at Columbia Law School, a senior advisor (non-resident) for the Center for Strategic and International Studies and as an appointee by the U.S. to the USMCA Chapter 10 Dispute Settlement Panel Roster.

Sarah Stewart is the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of Silverado Policy Accelerator. Sarah has over two decades of experience as an international trade lawyer, trade policy expert, and trade negotiator. In her current role, Sarah works to implement Silverado’s mission in areas including geopolitics, national security, international trade, critical supply chains, and energy security. Sarah’s views are featured in national publications such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Politico, and she is a regular speaker at domestic and international conferences.

Immediately prior to joining Silverado, Sarah led the public policy efforts at Amazon on U.S. trade policy and export controls matters. From 2013 to 2018, Sarah worked for the Office of the United States Trade Representative, with her most recent position being the Deputy Assistant USTR for Environment and Natural Resources. During her time at USTR, Sarah was the lead environment chapter negotiator for the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations with the European Union. Prior to joining USTR, Sarah served in different legal and policy roles at the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International, including spearheading a first-ever international legal group. Sarah began her career at the Law Offices of Stewart and Stewart, where she worked for over five years on behalf of U.S. manufacturing companies and workers.

Sarah serves on the Board of Directors for the Washington International Trade Foundation (WITF) and for GirlSecurity. Sarah is also a fellow at the National Security Institute.

Stephen Vaughn is a Partner in the International Trade Team of King & Spalding who works primarily on international trade litigation and policy matters. In April 2019, Stephen completed more than two years of service as the General Counsel for the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR).  In that position, he managed a team of government attorneys representing U.S. interests in both trade negotiations and trade litigation. During two months in early 2017, Stephen also served as the acting U.S. Trade Representative.  He is widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost authorities on current U.S. trade policy, as well as one of the most talented U.S. trade remedy litigators.

Stephen is recognized as a leading practitioner in Trade Remedies and Trade Policy by Legal 500 U.S., Chambers USA, and Chambers Global. He has been named a 2024 Client Service All-Star by BTI Consulting.

Kevin Wolf is a Partner at Akin. He has more than 25 years’ experience providing advice and counselling regarding the laws, regulations, policies and politics pertaining to export controls, sanctions, national security reviews of foreign direct investments and other international trade issues. His practice focuses on Export Administration Regulations (EAR, International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), and regulations administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

Kevin previously served as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration (2010- 2017) with the Bureau of Industry and Security, where he developed and implemented policies pertaining to export administration issues, particularly the licensing requirements of EAR. Kevin has not previously testified before the Commission.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND? 

The three-part Intensive Trade Seminar, cohosted by the Institute for International Economic Policy at George Washington University, is geared towards individuals who want to learn how trade policy is made in Washington, DC. Past attendees include those in business, law, academia, NGOs, embassies and the U.S. Government.

Participants gain insight from trade professionals, pose questions to policy makers, and learn about the ever-shifting trade landscape. Attendees come away with an understanding of the trade policy-making process, the role of its key players, and the important issues facing policy makers.

The curriculum is focused on helping attendees broaden their understanding of trade policy making, those seeking a career in trade policy, others new to the trade policy field, and anyone serving the import/export community.

We also encourage the international community working on economic and trade issues, and others who want to learn more about international trade, to participate in this program. 

If you cannot view every session at the time it is originally offered, most sessions* will also be available off-line to paying attendees (access code will be required).

Registration for the Intensive Trade Seminar is open to the public and all sessions are off-the-record/Chatham House Rules.

WITA has a two-day cancellation policy for this event

* Most sessions will be available to paying attendees to watch at a later time. However, certain sessions may not be recorded to facilitate more open discussion.

**If your agency or business does not use Zoom, we can work with you to make content available on an accessible platform for later viewing.

Diamond Sponsors will receive two free passes to attend the Intensive Trade Seminar; Platinum, Platinum Half, and Gold level Sponsors will receive one free pass.

Thank you to our WITA Academy Sponsors