Devin S. Sikes

Counsel

Areas of Focus

Devin S. Sikes

Counsel

dsikes@akingump.com

Areas of Focus

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Biography
  • Represents corporations, associations and governments in complex international trade matters before U.S. agencies.
  • Leads clients through high-stakes international trade litigation before U.S. courts and international tribunals.
  • Provides practical advice to clients on the day-to-day impact of U.S. trade law and policy.
  • Serves on the U.S. roster of panelists who resolve trade remedy disputes arising under Chapter 10 of the USMCA.
  • Served in the U.S. government for nearly a decade in various roles in the judicial and executive branches.

Devin Sikes helps clients across the globe deftly navigate complex international trade laws and policies to seize opportunities and avoid risks. Devin has represented corporations, big and small, across numerous industries, as well as counseled industry associations and sovereigns.

Clients look to Devin for advice on a broad range of questions related to imports, including trade policy, antidumping and countervailing duty measures, and customs matters. He also advises clients on a wide variety of issues arising under Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974, Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, Section 332 of the Tariff Act of 1930 and Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930.

Thanks to his extensive experience before U.S. courts and international tribunals, Devin regularly leads clients through high-stakes litigation challenging unfavorable international trade laws and determinations. He develops effective strategies, authors briefs and argues cases. Devin frequently appears before the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, as well as before dispute settlement panels established under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Chapter 10 and the World Trade Organization (WTO) Dispute Settlement Understanding. In 2021, Devin advised clients in two of the four appeals that Law360 selected as the “Top International Trade Cases of 2021.”

In April 2020, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) appointed Devin to the U.S. roster of panelists who resolve antidumping and countervailing disputes arising under Chapter 19 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Following the implementation of the USMCA, Devin’s appointment carried over to the U.S. roster of panelists who resolve disputes arising under USMCA Chapter 10. In April 2021 and again in April 2022, USTR reappointed Devin to that roster.

Apart from his work on international trade matters, Devin has counseled clients on a broad range of issues in disputes before the Supreme Court of the United States and the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the D.C., Federal, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 7th and 11th circuits. In those cases, Devin advised on a range of complex issues arising under administrative, immigration and patent law, among others.

Prior to joining Akin Gump, Devin served in the U.S. government for nearly a decade in various roles in the judicial and executive branches. Most recently, he served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Evan J. Wallach of the Federal Circuit.

Earlier in his career, Devin worked as a senior attorney in the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Office of the Chief Counsel for Trade Enforcement and Compliance. In that role, he represented Commerce in a series of significant antidumping and countervailing duty proceedings. Devin received numerous awards for his advocacy, including a Gold Medal (the highest form of honorary recognition for distinguished performance bestowed by the Secretary of Commerce) and a Bronze Medal (the highest honorary award for superior performance granted by Commerce’s International Trade Administration).

Devin began his career as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Judith M. Barzilay of the CIT. In that role, he assisted Judge Barzilay in actions before her at the CIT and in matters assigned to her when she sat by designation on the U.S. Courts of Appeal for the 6th, 9th and 11th circuits, as well as on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Devin is a native Kansan and citizen of the Cherokee Nation.

Representative Work
  • Represented various companies before the Federal Circuit in a dispute involving several hundred million dollars in duties on solar products.
  • Successfully defended Commerce before the CIT and the Federal Circuit in constitutional litigation challenging retroactive legislation. If unsuccessful, Commerce could have been prevented from applying the countervailing duty law to nonmarket economy countries such as China and imposing $4 billion in duties.
  • Represented the U.S. before the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body in an appeal concerning whether Section 129 of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act is inconsistent with various articles of the WTO Anti-dumping Agreement. At stake was the ability of the U.S. to implement adverse WTO rulings. Both the panel and the Appellate Body found that Section 129 was WTO-consistent.
  • Acted for Commerce in negotiating and drafting an agreement suspending ongoing administrative investigations of sugar from Mexico, a matter that involved nearly $700 million in duties. The agreements were executed and survived challenges in litigation.
  • Represented the government of British Columbia in NAFTA, USMCA and WTO appeals challenging various aspects of Commerce’s final determinations in the trade remedy investigations of softwood lumber from Canada.
  • Represented a Fortune 500 company in various appeals before the CIT, challenging Commerce’s final determinations in trade remedy investigations on biodiesel from Indonesia.
  • Advised a U.S. automobile manufacturer before Commerce in the investigation of imports of automobiles and automotive parts conducted pursuant to Section 232.
  • Counseled NEC Energy Solutions before the USTR in achieving an exclusion from duties that would otherwise have been imposed under Section 301.

Languages
  • Spanish

  • Portuguese

Education
  • J.D., University of Kansas School of Law, 2008

  • B.A., University of Kansas, 2005

Clerkships
  • U.S. Court of International Trade

  • U.S.C.A., Federal Circuit

Bar Admissions
  • District of Columbia

  • New York

  • Texas

Recognitions
  • The Legal 500 US, International Trade, 2021.
  • Super Lawyers Texas - Rising Star, 2019-2022.
  • Super Lawyers Washington, D.C. - Rising Star, 2018-2019.
  • Akin Gump Houston Pro Bono Attorney of the Year, 2022.
  • Capital Pro Bono Honor Roll, High Honors, 2018-2019.
Affiliations and Public Service
  • Board of Directors, Customs and International Trade Bar Association.
  • Board of Governors, University of Kansas School of Law.
  • Vice Chair of the International Trade Committee, Federal Circuit Bar Association.
  • Member, Giles S. Rich American Inn of Court.
  • Member, American Bar Association.
  • Member, American Constitution Society.
Speeches and Publications
  • “Issues at the Intersection of International Trade and Technology,” Panelist, American University Law Review’s Federal Circuit Symposium Webinar, November 5, 2021.
  • “Trump Tariffs and the Role of the Courts,” Panelist, Georgetown University Law Center’s International Trade Update, March 2021.
  • “International Trade in a Time of Crisis,” Panelist, Inter-Pacific Bar Association Webinar, September 2020.
  • “Energy Storage, Trade & China,” Panelist, U.S. Energy Storage Association Webinar, May 2020.
  • “Trade Wars: Tools, Trends & Tomorrow,” Panelist, Inter-Pacific Bar Association North American Regional Conference, Chicago, September 2019.
  • “How International Trade Lawyers Can Add Value For Corporate Clients,” Panelist, Inter-Pacific Bar Association Annual Meeting, Singapore, April 2019.
  • Devin has also guest lectured on international trade and appellate litigation at various law schools across the United States, including the William & Mary Marshall—Wythe School of Law, the American University Washington College of Law, the University of Kansas School of Law, the University of Houston Law Center and Santa Clara University School of Law.

Insights and Achievements

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