Doreen Edelman has more than 20 years of experience counseling companies on import and export matters and global expansion. Ms. Edelman advises clients on their export, import and compliance obligations related to defense articles, services and technologies and dual-use goods and technologies through the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the Department of Commerce, the Directorate of Defense Controls (DDTC) of the Department of State, and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Department of Treasury. Counseling includes the new Part 6 export compliance requirement of the I-129 form requiring businesses to certify that they have read the export control laws of the U.S. She assists with internal audits, compliance programs and U.S. Government investigations, including criminal trials. She determines product classifications, country of origin labeling and prepares license applications, commodity jurisdiction and classification requests, voluntary disclosures, and training modules for large and small companies. Ms. Edelman has a well-established relationship with OFAC officials inside the Department of Treasury and has successfully obtained numerous licenses for transactions involving embargoed and sanctioned countries. She also assists with customs, FCPA and export compliance issues in mergers and acquisitions due diligence.
Ms. Edelman works with U.S. companies entering new markets overseas and foreign companies doing business in the U.S. This includes drafting agency, licensing and distribution agreements, working with foreign counsel to assist her clients overseas and navigating U.S. foreign investment reporting requirements. She helps companies establish global business structures to increase market share and reduce costs and business risks, like FCPA. She advises on product importation issues such as tariff classification, valuation and duty rates as well as the benefits of free trade programs like GSP and NAFTA. She represented the Sultanate of Oman in its bilateral negotiations with the U.S. Government and secured passage of the US-Oman FTA. She is General Counsel to the American Turkish Council, a bilateral trade organization comprised of major U.S. and Turkish companies.
Ms. Edelman's work has carried her to all corners of the world, whether helping to establish a natural gas facility in Turkey, protecting a client's intellectual property in Japan, or watching out for the interests of a major fast-food chain franchisor in Latin America. She is co-author of a comprehensive analysis of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and many trade-related articles. Through all her work, Ms. Edelman offers her clients a combination of transactional expertise and business savvy, helping them establish strategic plans for entering new markets and intervening on their behalf with government regulators and policymakers. Follow Ms. Edelman on LinkedIn.
Ms. Edelman is a frequent speaker and contributor on all manner of international compliance and regulatory issues. Her most recent activities are below.
- Co-author – "Pharma and Devices are Targeted Industries for Corruption Investigations," Pharmaceutical Compliance Monitor (April 10, 2013)
- Author – "If You Think Your U.S. Agreements Will Work Well Overseas - Think Again," Corporate Compliance Insights (March 25, 2013)
- Featured – "Q&A With Baker Donelson's Doreen Edelman," Law360.com (March 11, 2013)
- Presenter – "Form I-129 Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker," American Conference Institute Seventh National Export Controls Forum on International Technology Transfers & Deemed Export Compliance (January 29, 2013)
- Presenter – "FCPA and Export Compliance - The Speed Dating Version," Louisiana Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel Professional Development Seminar (January 18, 2013)
- Presenter – "The Iran Sanctions and Iranian Students in the United States," podcast, AILA Agora (January 2013)
- Author – "INCOTERMS Rules - How They Can Improve Your Company's Compliance, Reduce Your Risk and Maximize Your Profit," Corporate Compliance Insights (January 21, 2013)
- Presenter – "FCPA: A Review and View of Future," London International Investment Law and Financial Regulation Symposium (December 4th, 2012)
- Author – "U.S. Importers Can't Blame the Broker When Customs Catches Counterfeit Goods," Corporate Compliance Insights (October 31, 2012)
- Presenter – "Doing Business in Houston for British Investors," UK Trade and Investment Webinar (October 16, 2012)
Recording available here.
- Update Author – "Federal Laws and Regulations Affecting the Foreign Investor in the United States," American Immigration Lawyers' Association's Immigration Options for Investors and Entrepreneurs, Second Edition.
- Author – "Import & Export Compliance: Classification is an Art - Part 1," Corporate Compliance Insights (July 30, 2012)
- Author – "Export Control Reform—Is Change Really Coming? What Will It Mean To You?" Corporate Compliance Insights (June 18, 2012)
- Author – "Export Compliance Requirements For The HR Manager? If You Hire Foreign Workers in the U.S., You Bet!" Corporate Compliance Insights (May 29, 2012)
- Author – "Antiboycott Reporting Requirement Often Overlooked By Exporters," Corporate Compliance Insights (March 21, 2012)
- Author – "The Nitty-Gritty of an Export Compliance Manual," Corporate Compliance Insights (February 20, 2012)
- Author – "Improve Your Company's Compliance Culture by Sharing Your Responsibilities (Little or No Extra Effort Required)," Corporate Compliance Insights (January 9, 2012)
- Author – "Compliance Program "Must Haves" for Doing Business Abroad," Corporate Compliance Insights (November 2, 2011)
- Author – "Anti-Corruption: Increasing Coordination and More Widespread Prosecution under Anti-Bribery Laws," Bloomberg Law Reports Corporate Counsel (September 12, 2011)
- Author – "State Department to Allow Foreign Employees Working with Defense Technologies Easier Access," BakerTech newsletter (August 9, 2011)
- Co-author – "Growing Foreign Prosecutions Under FCPA-Style Laws," Law360, August 4, 2011
- Moderator – "Do You Understand the I-129 Part 6 Export License Requirements? What You Need to Know," webinar, July 12, 2011.
Audio recording available here.
- Co-author – "Complications of Export Certification Requirements," Law360, June 9, 2011
- Author – "Summary of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act," Baker Donelson brochure
- Author – ABA Export Controls and Economic Sanctions Committee e-Newsletter, June 9, 2011
- Author – "Third-Party Contracting for HR Managers Complicated by Export Certification Requirement," Baker Donelson alert, June 2011; reprinted in Law360, June 2011
- Author – "Iranian Investors – Know the Rules," Baker Donelson alert, May 2011
- Co-author – "Inside US Sanctions Against Libya," Baker Donelson alert; reprinted in Law360, March 2011
- Speaker – "Export Controls 101," AILA Seminar – Managing the New I-129 Export Control Certification in Your Practice, Washington, D.C., February 2011
- Speaker – "EB5: Country Specific Issues," American Immigration Lawyers Association 2011 EB5 Conference, Las Vegas, NV, March 2011
- Co-author – "HR Managers Must Now Certify Export Compliance," Baker Donelson alert; also appeared in Law360, January and May 2011
- Speaker – American Immigration Lawyers Association "Managing the New I-129 Export Control Certification in Your Practice Seminar" teleconference, January 2011
- Author – "Corporations Must Focus On Deemed Exports," Baker Donelson alert; reprinted in Lexology®, January 2011
- Author – "Federal Laws and Regulations Affecting the Foreign Investor in the United States, Immigrant Investors: Creating Employment for U.S. Communities," Immigration Options for Investors & Entrepreneurs, 2nd Edition, American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2010
- Author – "Need Help with C-TPAT Certification?" Baker Donelson Transportation News, Issue 1, May 2010
- Author – "U.S. Government Cracks Down on Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Companies and Research Institutions for Export Control and FCPA Violations," Life Sciences, Volume 4, Issue 1, March 2010
- Speaker – American Immigration Lawyers Association 2009 Conference, "Country Specific Issues for EB-5 Practitioners," PARC 55 Hotel, San Francisco, CA, October 2009
- Speaker – AdvaMed 2009 Conference, "Quality in the Global Supply Chain," Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, D.C., October 2009
- Author – "USDA Drops New April 1 Labeling Requirements," Baker Donelson alert, February 2009
- Author – "Red Flags for Exporters," Global Atlanta, November 2008
- Author – "Enforcement of Export Control Violations on the Rise," The Federal Lawyer, October 2008
- Presenter – "Export Compliance in a Nutshell," Ethics & Compliance Officer Association webcast, December 2007
- Ms. Edelman has also authored articles in numerous publications, including:
- Oceana Publications, Inc., 1993, 1995, 1996
- Women in International Trade, May 1998
- Maryland Bar Journal, May 1998
- Memphis Business Journal, 1996
- Nashville Business Journal, 1996
- International Business Lawyer, January 1992
- Nihon Keizai Shinbun, May 1991
- Journal of Japanese Institute of International Business Law, November 1991
- AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
- Advamed China Regulatory Working Group – Mission: Working with Chinese State Council and State Food and Drug Administration officials to reduce or eliminate redundancy in China's medical device regulatory system; contribute to the development of China's adverse event reporting system; and ensure standards are harmonized with international practice.
- Member – Maryland, Florida and District of Columbia Bar Associations (International Law Sections)
- Member – American Bar Association (International Law Section; Corporation, Banking and Business Law Section)
- Member – Medical Committee with the American-Israeli Chamber of Commerce, Southeast Region
- Member – Board of Directors, American Turkish Council and American Friends of Turkey
- Co-Chair – TerraLex International Trade and Customs Practice Group
- Listed in Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers in International Law (2012, 2013)
- Law Clerk for Chief Judge Maryland Circuit Court William McCullough, 1987 – 1988
- Law Clerk for Office of the U.S. Attorney, Washington, D.C., 1986 – 1987
- Law Clerk for Marriott Corporation, Bethesda, Maryland, 1985
- District of Columbia, 1989
- Florida, 1988
- Maryland, 1987
- Court of International Trade, 1989
- National Law Center, George Washington University, J.D., 1987, with honors
- The George Washington University, School of Public and International Affairs, B.A, 1984, with distinction