Rod Hunter

Rod Hunter, a partner based in the Washington, DC office of Baker McKenzie, practices trade and investment law.

He previously served as Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and senior director for international economics at the National Security Council (NSC), the White House office that coordinates trade policy and supervises CFIUS. In that role, he managed CFIUS cases, including negotiating resolution of the most sensitive cases. A recognized expert in the field, he has testified before Congress during the legislative process leading to recent amendments to CFIUS’ authorizing legislation.

Previously, in addition to coordinating U.S. trade policy at the White House’s NSC, he served as senior counsel at the US Trade Representative’s office, where he litigated cases before the World Trade Organization. He has also taught trade law and policy at the University of Virginia’s Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and has testified before the United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

Earlier in his career, Rod practiced regulatory law in Brussels, Belgium for a decade, served as a judicial clerk to Judge Boyce F. Martin, US Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, served as an associate to Chief Justice Sir Anthony Mason, High Court of Australia and served as an assistant to Senator John W. Warner, US Senate.

Rod advises on international trade and investment policy and regulatory matters. Regarding investment, Rod regularly advises international and domestic firms on U.S. foreign investment regulation, including reviews conducted by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and procedures relating to mitigation of foreign ownership, control or influence (FOCI) under national industrial security regulations.

On trade, Rod regularly counsels firms and industry groups on international and U.S. trade matters. He advises on compliance of national regulation with international obligations (e.g., WTO agreements, and bilateral trade and investment agreements), on aspects of U.S. export control and supply chain regulation, and on other trade measures, such as Section 301 investigations.

University of Virginia School of Law

JD

Hampden-Sydney College

BA