Former Asst U.S. Trade Representative for China Affairs Claire Reade Rejoins Arnold & Porter

WASHINGTON, DC, October 5, 2015 -- Arnold & Porter LLP announced today that Claire Reade, former Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for China Affairs at the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), has rejoined the firm as senior counsel in the International Trade practice. Ms. Reade, who practiced at Arnold & Porter for more than 20 years before joining USTR, will reside in the firm’s Washington, DC office. Her experience at USTR will serve to benefit clients regarding regulatory and governmental matters in China, as well as more broadly on strategic issues and U.S. government policies relating to international trade and investment.

In her post as Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for China Affairs, Ms. Reade was responsible for managing U.S. trade negotiations with China, developing core strategies, coordinating U.S. interagency deliberations, and leading successful efforts to remove key trade barriers across the Chinese economy, including in agriculture, manufacturing, services, technology, and intellectual property. Within these sectors, she counseled major stakeholders on the resolution of trade problems, regularly briefed Congressional committees, and testified at Congressional hearings.

Prior to serving as Assistant U.S. Trade Representative, Ms. Reade was Chief Counsel for China Trade Enforcement at USTR. In that role, she represented the interests of the United States in working to ensure that China meets its international trade obligations to the United States. She played a top leadership role, including litigation strategist and chief negotiator, to achieve victories for the United States in nine vital World Trade Organization disputes against China.

“Claire was a star lawyer when she left us for government service; she is only more valuable to clients now,” said Arnold & Porter Chairman Thomas H. Milch. “Her comprehensive understanding of Chinese and U.S. trade policies makes her the ideal resource to help businesses navigate complex regulatory and governmental issues in China, and her decades of experience will be invaluable in other global markets as well. She also has unique skills that can assist Chinese companies interested in moving into markets outside China, including the United States.”

In rejoining Arnold & Porter, Ms. Reade said: “The team at Arnold & Porter has long been recognized for its first class strategic thinking and legal acumen in international trade and investment matters. Arnold & Porter’s renowned regulatory expertise is equally important to helping global clients craft innovative and effective approaches to doing business. I am pleased to return home to the firm and look forward to assisting clients in the complex and rapidly evolving  global marketplace.”

Arnold & Porter’s International Trade and Public International Law practices include numerous other former senior U.S. Government officials, including Whitney Debevoise, who served as U.S. Executive Director of the World Bank; John B. Bellinger III, who served as the  Legal Adviser for the State Department and National Security Council; Sam Witten, who served as Deputy Legal Adviser for the State Department; John Barker, who served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Export Controls; and Paolo Di Rosa, who served as Assistant Legal Adviser of the State Department for Western Hemisphere Affairs.

Ms. Reade is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a former chair of the American Bar Association (ABA) International Trade Law Section, and a former member of the ABA Council on Asia. She obtained her JD, cum laude, from Harvard Law School and received her MALD from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. After Ms. Reade received her JD, she spent a year in Taiwan studying Chinese dispute resolution procedures under a Harvard Sheldon Fellowship. She earned her BA from Wesleyan University, magna cum laude.

Arnold & Porter LLP is an international law firm of nearly 800 lawyers with offices in Brussels, Denver, Houston, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and Washington, D. C. The firm, founded in 1946, maintains more than 25 practice areas spanning a broad spectrum of the law, with a primary focus on litigation, transactional matters, and regulatory issues.