Devin S. Sikes

About Devin S. Sikes

I help clients navigate complex international trade laws and policies to achieve desired results. Clients look to me for counsel on a broad range of import questions, including in antidumping and countervailing duty proceedings and customs matters. I also advise clients on a wide variety of issues arising under Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974, Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, Section 332 of the Tariff Act of 1930, and Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930.Thanks to extensive experience before U.S. courts and international tribunals, I regularly guide clients through high-stakes appeals challenging unfavorable international trade laws and determinations. I develop effective strategies, author briefs, and argue cases. I frequently appear before the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, as well as dispute settlement panels established under USMCA Chapter 10 and the World Trade Organization Dispute Settlement Understanding.In April 2020, the U.S. Trade Representative appointed me to the U.S. roster of panelists who resolve antidumping and countervailing disputes arising under Chapter 19 of NAFTA. Following the implementation of the USMCA, my appointment carried over to the U.S. roster of panelists who resolve disputes arising under USMCA Chapter 10. USTR has reappointed me to that roster each year since 2020.Apart from my work on international trade matters, I have counseled clients on a broad range of issues in disputes before the Supreme Court of the United States, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the D.C, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 7th, 11th and Federal Circuits, and various U.S. district courts.I served in the U.S. Government for nearly a decade before joining Akin. Most recently, I clerked for Judge Evan J. Wallach of the Federal Circuit. Before that role, I worked as a Senior Attorney in the U.S. Department of Commerce\'s Office of the Chief Counsel for Trade Enforcement & Compliance. I began my career as a judicial law clerk to Judge Judith M. Barzilay of the CIT. There, I assisted Judge Barzilay on matters before her at the CIT and in actions assigned to her when she sat by designation on the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Sixth, Ninth, and Eleventh Circuits and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. I am a native Kansan and citizen of the Cherokee Nation.

Experience

1. Partner

   Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP

   Jan 2025 — Present

Education

• The University of Kansas

  B.A., in Philosophy, with Departmental Honors, and Spanish

  2001 — 2005

• University of Kansas School of Law

  J.D., with a Certificate in International Trade & Finance

  2005 — 2008

Skills

• Hearings
• Courts
• Civil Litigation
• Intellectual Property
• Guest Lecturing
• International Trade Law
• Legal Writing
• Litigation
• Legal Research
• Appeals
• Legal Issues
• Public Policy
• Administrative Law
• Commercial Litigation