As a first-generation immigrant, I have a multicultural background that helps to find understanding with colleagues and clients all over the world. I am fluent in English and Russian, proficient in French, and know basic Spanish. Over the course of my career I have worked in over a dozen countries in Europe, Middle East, Eastern Europe, Asia, and Latin America, and with clients and colleagues in dozens of other countries around the world.

When I was a paralegal and then a young lawyer, I was privileged to get trained in international trade law by working in the top trade practices of premier Washington DC law firms - Steptoe & Johnson, McDermott Will & Emery, and Arent Fox LLP.  Since then, I have worked as in-house counsel for some of the largest multinational companies in the world in the manufacturing, technology, and medical industries.  I was responsible for providing legal advice on embargoes, economic sanctions, export controls, antiboycott, and antidumping matters across numerous businesses and their international subsidiaries. I provided strategic advice to the trade compliance leadership teams and high-level business leaders of the company.  Through this experience I honed the skills of learning the unique needs and risk profile of each business and integrating cutting-edge trade compliance risk management approaches within the operational business practices.

I am admitted to practice law in the state of Minnesota and at the U.S. Court of International Trade.

My professional and civic affiliations include:

• Midwest Global Trade Association, Counsel to the Board of Directors
• Minnesota State Bar Association, International Business Law Section, 2022-2023 Chair
• Boundary Waters Advisory Committee, Counsel, Chair of the Board of Directors

Some of my past publications and presentations include:

• Article:  "How to keep track of dual-use demo units," Export Compliance Manager, Issue 5 (July 2020)
• Article:  "What NOT to do if you learn that your product goes into the supply chain of a restricted company," Export Compliance Manager, Issue 2 (April 2020)
• Panel presentation: "Russia – Ukraine Crisis: how to keep yourself and your clients on the right side of the law" (Minnesota State Bar Association Continuing Legal Education course, June 2, 2022)
• Presentation: "Coping with the use of Export Controls and Sanctions as Tools of Foreign Policy", (Minnesota State Bar Association Continuing Legal Education course, December 16, 2020)
• Panel presentation: “Caught Between Conflicting Global Rules - Successfully Navigating Opposing Sanctions Regimes”
  (Toronto, September 2018, American Conference Institute’s Forum on Global Economic Sanctions)
• Panel discussion: “Dealing with the evolution of customs and global trade: What actions can global companies take to effectively manage customs and global trade compliance risks?”
  (Dubai, October 2017, Global Trade Development Week Conference)
• Panel discussion: “Upping Your Due Diligence”
  (New York, December 2017, New York Forum on Economic Sanctions)
• Presentation: “Navigating the new Iran sanctions regime: a corporate compliance perspective”
  (Washington DC, September 2016, WorldECR Forum)
• Article (co-authored): “Planning After Export Controls or Economic Sanctions Violations Have Been Discovered,”
  The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation, vol. 49, No. 5 (March 9, 2016)
• Presentation: “Designing a Risk-Based Action Plan for the First Two Weeks after a Sanctions Violation is Discovered”
  (Washington DC, August 2015, ACI 8th Annual Advanced Forum on Economic Sanctions Enforcement and Compliance)
• Compliance manual (co-authored): “Exporter Policy Procedure Manual”,
  Thomson Reuters (April 2012)