Staying Ahead of the Curve: Update on the U.S. Export Control Reform Initiative

• Overview of the Export Control Reform Effort
• The 4 Singularities – Original Intentions, Current Realities
• The Latest Export Control Reform Developments
• Update on the Foreign Trade Regulations Proposed Rule
• Recently Introduced Export Legislation
• What If Congress Fails to Act?
• Advice for Staying Ahead of the Curve

Our Presenter:

Melissa Miller Proctor is a Partner with the law firm of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., and leads its Export Practice Group.  Based in Scottsdale, Arizona, Ms. Proctor has more than 15 years of experience advising exporters and importers on various issues involving compliance with the U.S. export, customs, and trade laws and regulations. Ms. Proctor provides advice on the export and reexport requirements applicable to defense articles and services subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), as well as to dual-use goods, technology and software (including encryption items) under the Export Administration Regulations. She also counsels clients on the requirements of the Commerce Department’s Office of Antiboycott Compliance, and the various U.S. embargo and sanctions programs administered by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. She routinely assists clients in the determination of commodity jurisdiction and export classification, including the preparation and submission of commodity jurisdiction requests and commodity classification requests where warranted. Ms. Proctor also assists companies in applying for export licenses and drafting agreements for government approval. She provides guidance to companies on the design and implementation of export compliance policies and procedures including technology control plans, technology transfer control plans, and export management compliance programs. Ms. Proctor assists clients in handling voluntary disclosures and responding to government requests for information, and represents clients through all phases of export enforcement actions. With respect to imports, Ms. Proctor conducts import compliance reviews, handles customs valuation, tariff classification and origin/marking issues, provides guidance on the various free trade agreements and special trade programs, represents clients during audits by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and assists clients in the filing of prior disclosures as well as responding to CBP inquiries, claims of liquidated damages, detentions, seizures and penalty actions.

 Before joining the Firm, Ms. Proctor was engaged in private practice with an international trade law firm in Chicago and a Big Four accounting and consulting firm in California, focusing on the areas of export controls, Customs law and trade remedies. She is a member of the bars in Arizona and Illinois, and is admitted to practice before the Court of International Trade and the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. She holds an LL.M. in International and Comparative Law from the Georgetown University Law Center, J.D. from the Valparaiso University School of Law, and a B.A. in Spanish and Russian from Indiana University. She is the Vice President of the Phoenix Chapter of the Organization of Women in International Trade, and is a member of the Arizona Technology Council, Society of International Affairs, TechAmerica, International Compliance Professionals Association, American Association of Exporters and Importers, Women in Defense, National Defense Industrial Association, and the American Bar Association.  Email address: mproctor@strtrade.com.