Mark A. Moran is a partner in Steptoe’s Washington office where he practices in the firm's International Trade & Investment Group. His practice centers on representing governments and private parties in international trade and investment litigation and arbitration as well as in bilateral and multilateral treaty negotiations.
For nearly 30 years, Mr. Moran has successfully litigated numerous high-profile trade cases before the WTO, binational panels convened under the US-Canada FTA and NAFTA, and US courts and federal agencies. His cases frequently involve issues of first impression under the WTO Agreements and US trade law, and their resolution has established important and often-cited legal precedents.
Mr. Moran has an active WTO practice, having advised governments and private sector clients in more than 20 WTO dispute resolution proceedings. He has assisted his clients in all phases of WTO dispute settlement, and routinely argues before WTO panels and the Appellate Body.
Mr. Moran is well known for his longstanding role as lead counsel to the Canadian industry in the US-Canada dispute over trade in softwood lumber, the most commercially significant and complex case ever filed under the US trade laws. Between 2001 and 2006, he was the architect of a multi-forum litigation strategy that led to repeated victories against the United States and paved the way for a settlement that returned over $4 billion in duties to his clients.
Mr. Moran also has advised and represented clients in connection with arbitrations under the leading institution rules, including the International Chamber of Commerce, the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, the American Arbitration Association, the London Court of International Arbitration, and ICSID. He was part of the team that handled one of the largest and most complex cases ever litigated before the US-Iran Claims Tribunal, where the firm prosecuted claims in excess of $1 billion on behalf of a consortium of US oil companies.
Mr. Moran also has advised both governments and commercial parties on investor-state dispute settlement issues arising under Bilateral Investment Treaties and NAFTA Chapter 11.
