Tim Stratford is senior counsel at Covington & Burling and a member of the firm’s International Trade, Corporate, and Public Policy Practice Groups. He is also a three time Chairman of AmCham China. Tim’s practice is focused on advising international clients doing business in China and assisting Chinese companies seeking to expand their businesses globally. Except for the five years he spent in Washington, DC as Assistant US Trade Representative (2005-2010), Tim lived and worked continuously in the greater China region from 1982-2023, including for twelve years as managing partner of the firm’s Beijing office.

As Assistant USTR, Tim was responsible for developing and implementing US trade policy toward mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, and Mongolia. He worked closely with other senior US and Chinese officials from numerous government departments and agencies to address problems encountered by companies engaged in bilateral trade and investment and co-chaired a number of important bilateral working groups and dialogues established under the US-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade and the US-China Strategic & Economic Dialogue.

Prior to serving at USTR, Tim was General Counsel for General Motors’ China operations, where he was a member of GM’s senior management team in China and oversaw the company’s legal and trade policy work. Tim also served previously as Minister-Counselor for Commercial Affairs at the US Embassy in Beijing. He is a graduate of Harvard Law School and Brigham Young University, and is fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese.