Christopher Swift is a partner in Foley & Lardner LLP’s Government Enforcement Defense & Investigations Practice and the Co-Chair of our International & National Security Team.  Drawing on three decades of legal, foreign policy, and national security experience, Dr. Swift serves as a trusted advisor, strategic counselor, and white-collar defense lawyer for clients managing complex international and national security challenges.

 International Practice Profile

Dr. Swift defends clients in complex international investigations and government enforcement actions involving anti-money laundering (AML), economic sanctions (OFAC), arms controls (ITAR), dual-use exports (EAR), firearms and explosives (ATF), the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), forced labor, human trafficking, and the application of international treaties under U.S. domestic law.  Other notable engagements include counseling clients on the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), the USA PATRIOT Act, and U.S. Government investigations involving espionage, terrorism, and transnational criminal syndicates.

In addition to his white-collar defense practice, Dr. Swift also represents clients before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), including routine foreign investment reviews and self-initiated national security investigations. He also counsels and defends clients in parallel national security proceedings involving the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), the Defense Counterintelligence & Security Agency (DCSA), Team Telecom, and other U.S. Government agencies.  Notable experience includes negotiating National Security Agreements (NSAs) and FOCI mitigation measures for companies supporting the U.S. defense, intelligence, and law enforcement communities.

Government & Policy Experience

Prior to entering private practice, Dr. Swift served in the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, where he enforced sanctions targeting rogue states, terrorist syndicates, and weapons proliferators. While at OFAC, he supported a broad spectrum of civil and criminal investigations in conjunction with partners at the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and other U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies.

Dr. Swift was previously an adjunct professor of national security studies at Georgetown University and a Term Member at the Council on Foreign Relations, where he served on the Russia Study Group and International Law Study Group. His other notable professional experience spans research fellowships and policy roles with the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS), Freedom House, the University of Virginia’s Center for National Security Law, the U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), and a White House internship in the Office of Vice President Gore.