Jay Taylor is a partner in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP and is based in the Firm's Washington, D.C. office. He is a member of the Firm’s Global Trade & Cross Border Strategies Practice Group. Jay advises clients on international trade policy and dispute resolution, customs and export controls matters.
Jay rejoined McDermott after several years at the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), where he served as Associate General Counsel. During his tenure at USTR, Jay acted as lead U.S. counsel in a number of cases at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland.
Jay advised the agency on a wide range of trade policy issues including food safety, trade in agricultural products, technical barriers to trade, intellectual property and the development of standards, working closely with regulators from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the State Department, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
Jay also served as counsel to the U.S. government in recent free trade agreement negotiations with Korea, Australia, Central America (CAFTA), Morocco, Malaysia and Bahrain, as well as in wine negotiations with the European Union and “New World” wine producers.
Jay is a regular speaker on international trade issues at conferences around the country.
In addition, Jay has experience in advising companies on export compliance issues, including assisting companies with export control audits, as well as on a wide variety of customs matters.
Jay is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and Maryland and is a member of the American Bar Association.
Representative Experience
- Lead U.S. counsel in several proceedings at the WTO
- U.S. counsel to numerous free trade agreements
- Advised clients on global trade strategies and the opening of export markets
- Advised clients on export compliance issues
- Advised clients on customs issues, including product classification and country of origin labeling
Education
- Tulane University School of Law, J.D. (cum laude)
- Princeton University, B.A.
