Chris Cochlin advises businesses and governments on a wide range of international trade matters, including antidumping and countervailing duty litigation, trade policy and trade negotiations, bilateral investment, and market access strategies to challenge or defend foreign and domestic government measures. He also advises Canadian and international companies in the defense, energy, materials, high technology, and communications sectors extensively on customs compliance and on compliance with Canada’s export controls, economic sanctions and the controlled goods (defense contracting) regime.
Representative Work
Mr. Cochlin represents a wide variety of North American manufacturers in antidumping and countervailing duty proceedings, including North American steel producers and other North American and multinational manufacturers of industrial, commercial, and agricultural products. Mr. Cochlin also advises a wide variety of North American and other multinational businesses and Canadian and foreign governments on trade policy, trade negotiations, and bilateral investment matters. Finally, Mr. Cochlin regularly advises a variety of businesses in the energy sector, high technology, financial institutions and other sectors on compliance with Canadian export controls and economic sanctions, and defense-related trade controls including representation before the responsible Canadian government agencies.
Government Service
Mr. Cochlin served as international trade counsel for nearly a decade in the Government of Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, where he provided strategic advice to government officials on trade and investment treaty and policy issues. Mr. Cochlin has briefed and argued numerous trade disputes at the WTO and under the NAFTA, including before WTO panels and the Appellate Body (e.g. softwood lumber, dairy products, upland cotton, regional aircraft), and has appeared before numerous other ad hoc trade tribunals. He also served as lead counsel in FTA negotiations, and as a Trade Policy analyst at the Government of Canada’s Department of Finance developing policy and negotiating positions on antidumping and countervailing duty rules for the WTO Doha Round of trade negotiations.
Mr. Cochlin is the recipient of the Government of Canada’s Head of the Public Service Award as well as several awards for trade service relating to his work advising on and litigating trade disputes.
Honors
- Recognized by Chambers Global and Chambers Canada as a leading lawyer (“Band 1”) in the area of International Trade Law.
- Recognized by The Best Lawyers in Canada as a leading lawyer in the area of International Trade and Finance Law, and named Lawyer of the Year in 2023 for International Trade and Finance Law.
- Ranked by The Legal 500 as a leading individual in the area of International Trade Law.
- Recognized by LEXPERT as “Most Frequently Recommended” in International Trade Regulation, and “Repeatedly Recommended” in Commodity Tax/Customs.
- Recognized as a leader in Trade & Customs by Who’s Who Legal in both National and Global reports.
- Recognized by Expert Guides, the World’s Leading Lawyers Chosen by Their Peers, as a Leading International Trade Lawyer in Canada
Professional Affiliations
- Appointed to the General and Appellate Dispute Resolutions rosters under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA)
- Appointed to Canadian Roster of Panellists for Dispute Resolution under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, Chapter 10
- Member, Canadian Council on International Law
- Member, Canadian Bar Association, International Trade and Investment Committee
- Member, Ontario Bar Association, International Law Section
- Member, American Bar Association
- Co-Lecturer (Winter 2016 Term), International Trade & Investment Law, Professional LLM in International Business Law, Osgoode Hall Law School (Professional Development), Toronto
Education
- LL.L., University of Ottawa (National Program)
- LL.B., University of Ottawa (National Program)
- B.A., University of Alberta
Languages
- English
- French
Bar Memberships
- Ontario
- Quebec