Michael is a senior policy advisor in the firm’s international trade practice advising clients in various international trade, enforcement, and compliance issues related to U.S. economic sanctions and export controls, with a focus on the maritime, energy, and financial sectors, including digital assets and securities. At Akin, he draws on his deep experience developing and implementing U.S. economic sanctions and engaging with industry, foreign governments, and Capitol Hill to assist clients on matters involving sanctions as well as international trade policy and anti-money laundering, including through analysis of legislation.

Michael previously served as Deputy Assistant Director for Policy at OFAC, where he managed over a dozen economic sanctions programs related to the Middle East, Asia, and global topics such as cyber threats, and designed complex sanctions options and represented the agency to advance strategy toward sensitive national security and economic issues related to China. He also previously served as a Senior Sanctions Policy Advisor where he implemented sanctions in response to Russia’s war against Ukraine, novel and complex investment restrictions on Chinese military companies, and other initiatives such as developing Hong Kong-related sanctions and enhancing sanctions with respect to North Korea and global human rights abuse and corruption.

Earlier in his career, he served as a Deputy Team Chief and Senior Advisor in the U.S. State Department’s nonproliferation bureau, overseeing the launch of technical programs to improve international sanctions implementation and new agreements to pursue bilateral and regional cooperation to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. His experience in sensitive international and economic policy and national security issues and legislative affairs make him a trusted advisor to clients navigating the U.S. sanctions and export control arena.