International Policy and Treaty Negotiations

KalikLewin offers unique expertise in the area of international policy and treaty negotiations. KalikLewin has successfully developed alliances among like-minded industry players from various countries to coordinate efforts with international governments to reduce trade barriers and/or advance principles of regulatory coherence among trading partners.

KalikLewin professionals are experts in developing and coordinating private-public working groups to solve problems in international trade among trading partners. The firm understands that trade issues span a number of regulatory areas requiring regulators from different government agencies to find ways to bridge regulatory hurdles. We also understand that international regulatory responsibilities often are organized and managed differently depending upon the country. KalikLewin provides guidance and develops strategies to further the ability of private industry, including individual companies and trade associations, and domestic and foreign governments to work together to find common ground to ease trade barriers.

• Coordinated initial 1998 meeting of the World Wine Trade Group (WWTG), a pluri-lateral private sector/public sector organization focused on reducing barriers to world-wide trade in wine, and has participated as counsel to the Wine Institute since.
• As Counsel to the Tequila Bulk Producers Alliance, helped to establish a bi-lateral private sector Tequila coalition to work with the US and Mexican governments resulting in the Memorandum of Understanding Between the Office of the United States Trade Representative and the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury with respect to the implementation of the Agreement between the Office of the United States Trade Representative and the Secreteria de Economia of Mexico on Trade in Tequila. December 2005.
• Helped to develop the private sector strategy on the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) initiative to interest APEC nations to adopt principles of the World Wine Trade Group in May 2002 and helped to develop the first APEC wine regulators forum in San Francisco in September 2011.
• Established an international coalition to fight an attempt by the European Union to have the World Customs Organization reclassify certain articles from intermediate wine products to distilled spirits products for excise tax purposes.
• Served as an observer to the World Intellectual Property Organization.
• Acted as counsel to the U.S. wine industry in the drafting and negotiation of the Agreement on Mutual Acceptance of Oenological Practices in December 2001 and the Agreement on Requirements for Wine Labeling between the United States and Australia, Canada, Chile, South Africa and New Zealand.