Photograph of Robert Holleyman

Government Experience

  • Office of the U.S. Trade Representative—Ambassador, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative (2014-2017); Member, U.S. Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations (2010-2014)
  • United States Senate—Senior Counsel, U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation (1987-1990); Legislative Director and Assistant, U.S. Senator Russell B. Long (1982-1987)

Education

  • Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, B.A. (1976) 2012 Distinguished Alumnus
  • Louisiana State University Law School, J.D. (1979)
  • Stanford Graduate School of Business, Certificate (1998)

Admissions

  • District of Columbia
  • Texas
  • Louisiana

State of Play: Digital Transformation – The Sky's the Limit


Click to read this article from
Crowell & Moring's Regulatory Forecast 2018.
Regulatory Forecast 2018

Robert Holleyman, Partner Washington, D.C.
rholleyman@crowell.com
Phone: +1 202.624.2505
1001 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20004-2595

Ambassador Robert Holleyman is the president and CEO of C&M International and a partner in Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group.

Robert has significant trade, international business,  economic policy, and legal experience from his service as Deputy U.S. Trade Representative, as CEO of a highly successful information technology advocacy association, and work as counsel in the U.S. Senate. He served as Deputy United States Trade Representative from 2014-2017, with the rank of Ambassador.  

In his most recent position, Ambassador Holleyman was responsible for U.S. trade and investment relations with Asia and with regional institutions, including the Asia-Pacific Cooperation (APEC) forum. He led USTR’s negotiations with China, including the work of the annual Joint Committee on Commerce and Trade (JCCT) and with India through the U.S.-India Trade Policy Forum (TPF). In addition, Robert was responsible for global trade policy in the areas of services, investment, intellectual property, and innovation.  

Ambassador Holleyman led the creation of a new Digital Trade Working Group within USTR to focus on trade policy and the digital economy and to advance U.S. negotiating priorities around digital trade. He developed and advanced USTR’s “Digital2Dozen,” a series of groundbreaking measures secured in the Asia-Pacific region that established rules promoting a free and open internet; expanded e-commerce; led to the free flow of cross-border data transfers; and enhanced cybersecurity, consumer privacy, competition in telecommunications networks, and disciplines to eliminate and prohibit barriers to new digital products and services.

Ambassador Holleyman served as a board member of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Government’s global development financing institution. He represented USTR on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS), reviewing foreign acquisitions of U.S. commercial entities for their impact on national security. 

While in the private sector, Robert was appointed by President Obama to serve as a member of the U.S. Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations (ACTPN). He previously served as a member of the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Services for the U.S. Department of Commerce and USTR. In earlier public service, Robert was Senior Counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation; Legislative Director and Assistant to U.S. Senator Russell B. Long (D-LA); and Judicial Clerk to U.S. District Judge Jack M. Gordon of the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans.  

Robert was President and CEO of BSA/The Software Alliance from 1990–2013, where he transformed an early stage enterprise into a global association representing the world’s software powerhouses across 65 countries with 16 foreign offices. At BSA, he positioned companies to address emerging IP, standards, competition, and innovation issues. In his private sector endeavors, he launched Cloud4Growth, a consultancy focused on cloud architecture. Robert has testified frequently before Congress and international bodies, and appeared in major media outlets in the U.S. and internationally on the topics of innovation, IP, emerging markets, export controls, encryption, cybersecurity, e-commerce, and cloud computing. He was named by Managing IP magazine as one of the “50 Most Influential People” in the intellectual property world, by the The Washington Post as a key private sector player in cybersecurity policy, and by Computer Reseller News as one of “20 To Watch” in the software industry. Previously, Robert worked in commercial litigation with a law firm in Houston, Texas.

Robert received his Juris Doctor degree from Louisiana State University Law School and his Bachelor of Arts degree from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, where he was named its 2012 Distinguished Alumnus. He has studied at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.


Affiliations

Admitted to practice: District of Columbia, Texas, Louisiana

Professional Activities and Memberships

  • Georgia O’Keefe Museum, Santa Fe NM, Board of Trustees
  • National Building Museum, Honorary Trustee
  • Stephen Decatur House Museum, Former Board Member
  • Bryce Harlow Foundation, Former Board Member
  • Food & Friends, Former Board Member

Speeches & Presentations

  • "Is Innovation with Chinese Characteristics Fueling a Tech War? What Does the Global Technology Landscape Look Like in 10 Years?" U.S. Chamber/AmCham China 9th annual China Business Conference, Washington, D.C. (May 1, 2018). Presenter: Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "Trade policy developments: Section 232, NAFTA renegotiation, and trade remedies," Trade in 2018 - What's Ahead?, Webinar (April 19, 2018). Presenters: Daniel Cannistra and Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "Digital Economy and The Impact on Trade, Taxes and Outsourcing," The Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School, Cambridge, MA (March 26, 2018). Presenter: Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "Free Trade or Protectionism: Are We Going Local? The Renegotiation of Brexit, NAFTA and Others – What Are the Challenges and Opportunities?" Biennial IBA Latin American Regional Forum Conference, Mexico City, Mexico (March 15, 2018). Presenter: Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "What is The Future for Domestic Enforcement of IP Activities Occurring Abroad?" The Sedona Conference on International Patent Litigation, Reston, VA (February 2018). Moderator: Monte Cooper; Presenters: Matthew Powers, Brian Busey, Sidney Rosenzweig, Christine Lehman, and Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "IoT Data-Ownership and Licensing – Who Owns the Data?" The 5th Annual Internet of Things Global Summit, Washington, D.C. (October 2017). Moderator: Ambassador Robert Holleyman; Presenters: Patrick Parodi, Stacey Gray, Susan Allen, Mark Eichorn, and Vince Jesaitis.
  • "Dialogue on Regional Trade Agreements and Free Trade Agreements," Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Senior Officials’ Meeting, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam (August 2017). Presenters: Motomu Takahashi, Eduardo Pedrosa, Jeff Schott, and Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "Prioritizing African Trade: Policies & Practices," Citi & George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affair, Washington, D.C. (April 2017). Presenters: Michael Moore, Anabel Gonzalez, Kimberley Claman and Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "NAFTA: Renegotiation," Georgetown’s McCourt School of Public Policy and Arent Fox, Washington, D.C. (April 2017). Keynote: Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "Trump, China and Trade Wars: Tech in the Trenches," South by Southwest, Austin, Texas (March 2017). Presenters: Laura Sallstrom and Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "International Trade and Cybersecurity," Global Cyberspace Cooperation Summit VII, East-West Institute, Berkeley, California (March 2017). Discussants: Admiral David Simpson, Del Christensen, Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "The U.S. Trade Landscape," Austin Chamber of Commerce Federal Advocacy Council, Austin, Texas (February 2017). Presenter: Ambassador Robert Holleyman.
  • "Keynote Speech on Trade," International Bar Association Annual Conference 2016, Washington, D.C. (September 20, 2016). Keynote Speaker and Presenter: Ambassador Robert Holleyman.

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Jul.10.2017 Former Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Robert Holleyman Joins C&M International as President & CEO and Crowell & Moring as Partner