David Mortlock is Co-Chair of Willkie’s Global Trade & Investment Practice Group and Managing Partner of the Washington office. He advises clients on international trade and government regulation of cross-border transactions, particularly the intersection of economic regulation and national security.

David is formerly the Director for International Economic Affairs at the White House National Security Council, in which capacity he advised the President and his National Security Advisor on sanctions, corruption and other international finance and trade issues. He helped lead the interagency process to develop and implement sanctions on Russia and Venezuela as well as changes of sanctions for Iran, Cuba, Syria and Burma. He also developed and coordinated implementation of the U.S. international anticorruption strategy.

David has also worked at the U.S. Department of State, where he focused on sanctions policy as Deputy Coordinator for Sanctions Policy; Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment; and Attorney-Advisor for Sanctions and Terror Finance. In these roles, he oversaw the creation and implementation of sanctions for Iran, Burma, North Korea and Syria; oversaw economic policy for the Middle East and North Africa; and provided legal guidance for the terrorism finance program.