Ata Akiner | Lawyer

Ata Akiner focuses his practice on helping global and U.S. clients navigate complex regulatory and policy matters related to international trade and national security.

Prior to joining Pillsbury, Ata worked as an international trade and national security attorney at another law firm. Ata advises clients on potential national security risks posed by foreign investments and guides clients seeking national security approval before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). He counsels U.S., multinational and non-U.S. companies on export controls and economic sanctions compliance matters and provides due diligence reviews in connection with mergers and acquisitions. Ata also advises on trade remedy and trade policy matters.

Representative Experience

Ata has advised and represented foreign sovereigns and private companies across sectors in a wide range of international trade and national security matters. Prior to and during law school, Ata worked as a trade policy analyst at an international law firm in Washington, DC, and was an intern at the Export-Import Bank of the United States’ Office of the General Counsel.

Professional Highlights

Recognized by Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch (published by BL Rankings LLC) for Administrative/Regulatory Law (2024 – 2025)
Capital Pro Bono High Honor Roll (2021)
“FERC Compliance with NEPA: Upstream and Downstream Impacts,” Vermont Journal of Environmental Law (Vol. 20, Issue 1), Spring 2019. Author.
Runner-up in the American Constitution Society’s 2019 Constance Baker Motley National Student Writing Competition for the piece “The President’s Power to Withdraw from International Agreements: The Role of Congress and the Courts.”

Fellow, Bryce Harlow Foundation (2018)

Recipient of CALI Excellence for the Future Award in 2017 for International Trade Law

“Now Is the Time for a U.S.-Turkey Free Trade Agreement,” The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Policy Watch #2107, July 2013. Author.

Education

J.D., Georgetown University Law Center, 2019

M.Phil., International Relations, University of Cambridge, 2010

B.A., History and Political Science, Rutgers University, 2008
magna cum laude

Admissions