Rich Ashooh, the Commerce Department’s former assistant secretary for export administration who resigned July 16 (see 2007020027), joined semiconductor equipment maker Lam Research Corp. as their global head of government affairs. In a statement, the company said Ashooh will bring a “sophisticated understanding of the policy process” and is respected across the industry. “His track record of solving complex problems and engaging diverse stakeholders makes him an ideal partner to advocate on behalf of Lam Research,” the company said. The announcement was first reported by Reuters.

New appointees were named to the Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee and six Agricultural Technical Advisory Committees by the secretary of agriculture and the U.S. trade representative. The 25 appointees will serve until 2024.

Jon Perdue is the new executive director of CBP’s Office of Trade Relations, Acting Commissioner Mark Morgan said during the June 15 meeting of the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee. Perdue was previously with the Caribbean and Latin America desk of the U.S. Agency for International Development. Valarie Neuhart, previously acting executive director, will continue to be deputy executive director at the Office of Trade Relations, a CBP spokesperson said.

Holland & Knight hired Francisco Sanchez, previously CEO of CNS Global Advisors, to co-chair the firm's International Trade Practice, it said in a news release. Sanchez was also undersecretary of commerce in charge of the International Trade Administration, 2010-2013.

Guidepost Solutions added Robert Roach, previously chief global compliance officer at New York University, as senior adviser, the company said in a news release. “Roach will help develop compliance, risk management and monitoring programs for both domestic and international organizations,” the company said. “He brings particular expertise in several complex regulatory areas including export control and trade sanctions laws, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other international anti-bribery laws, higher education and research compliance laws, equal opportunity laws, supply chain ethics and international fair labor standards compliance.”

The U.S. named six panelists for the Rapid Response Labor Mechanism, for the enforcement of USMCA labor protections:

The U.S. Trade Representative announced the appointment of USMCA state-to-state dispute panelists July 1:

The National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America will use Sandler Travis as its new customs counsel, the NCBFAA said in a June 16 news release by email. Lenny Feldman will serve as lead counsel within the firm, it said. Sandler Travis and Feldman replace Grunfeld Desiderio and Alan Klestadt, who were the NCBFAA's customs counsel for more than a dozen years, the association said.

Joshua Holzer, previously chief counsel for global trade at Pfizer, joined the StoneTurn advisory firm, StoneTurn said in a news release. The company said Holzer “offers a unique, practical understanding of economic sanctions,” export controls and import matters.

Jamieson Greer, chief of staff at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative from May 2017, is joining King & Spalding as a partner in its international trade practice. The law firm said that Greer was involved in negotiations for the phase one deal with China and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. “He also played a key role for USTR in the legislative reform of U.S. foreign investment reviews and implementation of the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act by [the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S.],” the firm said. Last year, King & Spalding hired Steven Vaughn, the general counsel at USTR.