Robert Lighthizer
18th United States Trade Representative (USTR) from 2017 to 2021Robert E. Lighthizer served as the 18th United States Trade Representative (USTR) from 2017 to 2021.
An experienced trade negotiator and litigator, Ambassador Lighthizer spearheaded several historic trade agreements as USTR, ushering in a new era of fair, balanced, and reciprocal trade for U.S. workers, producers, and businesses. Chief among these accomplishments, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) promises to update and rebalance trade in North America, expand U.S. market access, protect workers and the environment, and incentivize manufacturing in the United States. Additional agreements he reached with South Korea and Japan significantly expanded U.S. trade opportunities in those countries and established a groundbreaking paradigm for digital trade. After confronting China on its abusive trade practices, Ambassador Lighthizer also secured the U.S.-China Phase One Economic and Trade Agreement, a fully enforceable agreement that addresses China’s discriminatory treatment of U.S. companies, intellectual property theft, and currency manipulation, while maintaining tariffs on key Chinese products and increasing China’s purchases of U.S. goods and services by at least $200 billion over two years. Additionally, he brought attention to systemic issues and outdated, ineffective rules at the World Trade Organization (WTO), placing unprecedented pressure on the WTO’s activist Appellate Body and working with our trade partners on wider reforms.
At the time he was chosen by President Trump to serve as USTR, Ambassador Lighthizer had been a partner at an international law firm, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom for over 30 years. Before that, Ambassador Lighthizer served as Deputy USTR for President Ronald Reagan and negotiated over two dozen bilateral international agreements, including agreements on steel, automobiles, and agricultural products. As Deputy USTR, he also served as Vice Chairman of the Board of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.
Prior to becoming Deputy USTR, Ambassador Lighthizer was Chief of Staff of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance under Chairman Bob Dole. In this position, he was a key player in enacting the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 – the most significant tax reform in decades – and other elements of the Reagan economic program. Ambassador Lighthizer earned a bachelor’s degree at Georgetown University and his Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center. He is a native of Ashtabula, Ohio and has two children. He is the author of “No Trade Is Free”, a best-selling book on trade policy. He writes often for major publications and is a frequent speaker on trade, politics, and American history.
