International Trade

Baker Botts' International Trade Group, which is based in the Washington, Brussels and London offices, has an active, diverse and experienced practice in advising clients on complying with U.S., EU and other government regulations that affect the cross-border movement of goods, technology, services and investment. The group advises both U.S. and international clients on the applicability of export control and trade regulations, including the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce, Energy, NRC as well as EU and Member State export control regulations. Our lawyers also counsel clients on a wide range of issues relating to U.S. and EU economic embargoes involving the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, the EU Commission and the competent authorities of the EU Member States.  The group also assists clients in addressing regulatory challenges with access to the U.S. and EU markets involving customs, market access barriers and CFIUS review of foreign investment into the U.S.

Our clients include companies in a wide variety of industries, from technology companies in the aviation, computer, software, telecommunications, biotechnology, satellite and defense sectors to manufacturers in more traditional sectors such as chemicals, natural resources, food products, machine tools and other industrial products.

We assist our clients in navigating complicated trade regulatory processes and are experienced in creating and executing solutions that allow them to operate their businesses in accordance with rapidly changing and sometimes conflicting trade laws and regulations. We design and implement compliance programs tailored to our client’s particular realities and have significant experience with investigations of all magnitudes, from internal audits to voluntary disclosures to multi-year investigations involving multiple jurisdictions. We develop appropriate remediation efforts in order to negotiate the most favorable possible resolution for our clients.

The International Trade Group offers legal advice on the full range of international trade practice areas, including:

• Export Controls
• Sanctions
• Customs and Antidumping
• Trade Policy and Market Access
• Foreign Investment in the United States: CFIUS
• Anticorruption (FCPA and UKBA)

Export Controls (U.S. and EU):
We offer our clients a comprehensive range of services in connection with major export controls regimes around the world, including controls administered by the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce, Energy, NRC as well as EU and Member State export control regulations. We are also experienced in dealing with the export control regimes in China and countries in the Middle East.

Sanctions (U.S. and EU):
We regularly counsel domestic and foreign companies on a wide range of issues relating to U.S. and EU economic embargoes. Our lawyers have extensive experience working with the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, the EU Commission and the competent authorities of the EU Member States, as well the authorities in Canada and Australia. We assist clients with sanctions-related issues ranging from pre-and post-acquisition diligence to representation in criminal and civil investigations of potential violations.

Customs and Antidumping (U.S. and EU):
We handle all phases of antidumping and countervailing duty investigations and other administrative proceedings in the U.S. and the EU. We also assist clients with all aspects of the importation of goods and products into the United States and the EU member states, including product classification, origin determination under preferential trade arrangements, duty assessment, import compliance planning, and representation in investigations by national customs authorities and court proceedings.

Trade Policy and Market Access (U.S. and EU):
We advise companies to overcome market access barriers in the U.S., the EU and third countries. We have experience with the applicable disciplines of the World Trade Organization. Importantly, we can offer a coordinated approach on both sides of the Atlantic, which is of critical importance in high-stakes third country market access cases.

Foreign Direct Investment into the United States: CFIUS :
We are experienced in assisting clients with a broad spectrum of issues related to foreign investment in the United States, including securing the consent of CFIUS for proposed acquisitions. We handle all facets of the CFIUS process, from counseling on whether to submit a voluntary notice application to CFIUS, to navigating clients through the 30-day review and 45-day investigation processes, to negotiating mitigation agreements.