More »
University Communications

International Trade Conference to be Held at University of Richmond Law School

October 4, 2001

Richard W. Fisher, former deputy U.S. trade representative, will give the keynote address at an international trade symposium Oct. 5 from 1:30 to 6 p.m. in the Moot Court Room at the University of Richmond.

Ambassador Fisher, who was chief operating officer of the U.S. government for NAFTA, is replacing Mack McLarty as the annual Emanuel Emrock Lecturer. McLarty, who was President Clinton's White House Chief of Staff, had to withdraw unexpectedly from the symposium.

Fisher had oversight responsibilities for bilateral trade issues in Canada, Mexico and the countries of the Western Hemisphere, and for the development of the Free Trade Area of the Americas, representing the U.S. at the Cabinet level for multilateral negotiations with the 33 Latin and Caribbean nations involved. Throughout his tenure as Deputy Trade Representative, he also served as vice chairman of the board of directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corp.

The symposium is called "The Changing Labor Markets of the Western Hemisphere: Labor Issues Relating to the Free Trade agreement of the Americas."

Panelists, consisting of attorneys, academics and public policy professionals, will discuss whether free trade blocs benefit or hinder the lives of workers, followed by an examination of what the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas really is.

The symposium is sponsored the University of Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business, the Richmond Quest and the Virginia Labor Studies Center at Virginia Commonwealth University. It is free to the public.