Meet Josh Beker, International Trade Attorney at Roberts & Kehagiaras LLP.
Josh came to his passion for the law by chance, though the signs of his future career were with him from a young age. As a child, Josh remembers his father telling him he would grow up to be a lawyer or a clown. Josh originally pursued a career in engineering but took a couple of constitutional law courses which ignited something inside of him. After graduating from college, he decided to work in a law firm for basic legal review to see if it was something he was sure he wanted to do. When he realized it was, he went to law school and found he had an interest in the law of war and national security law. The next logical step was international trade.
He’s flourished in that space. He’s thrilled by the complex problem solving, wide breadth of work, and the wide variety of clients who need assistance moving goods and being able to help them achieve their goals. Especially knowing that small assistance for one person can impact an entire industry.
When asked, “How do you approach client representation and advocacy in this specialized area of law?” He had this to say:
“It’s interesting because advocacy is a compelling word in this field. I don’t generally go to court to advocate in the traditional sense. Most of my day is spent helping my clients plan and solve issues. Oftentimes, that involves approaching a governmental body to obtain their approval or consent of a client’s plan. That is still advocacy.”
Josh has a keen sense for identifying and mitigating challenges. He knows each client is unique and identifying their challenges is a factor determinative question. In trade, challenges can depend on current political winds, where the cargo goes, how it comes into the country, or where it’s produced. All of these factors can affect the outcome of the movement of goods. For one client, the challenge might be duty mitigation, for another, how to help the client better understand their product from the government’s point of view. He understands that the biggest challenges are client specific and understands that every small decision a client makes in the supply chain, sales avenue, or transit method can change the outcome that we need to present to the government to overcome a client’s specific challenges.
Josh always says, “Key to being successful in this field, aside from communication and attention to detail, is knowing that the smallest factor can change your approach to the representation, and being able to spot that one factor is what is going to drive successful outcomes. This requires an interest and a desire to know how things work. Our customers can come to us with anything from dog toys to airplane parts, semiconductors, heavy machinery, furniture, or a new product altogether. We need to understand these products. You are not going to be a good advocate for the client if you are not interested in the product or how it works. A desire to learn will help represent that client better.”
When Josh isn’t advocating for his clients, he spends his time traveling the world. He recently returned from a trip to the Balkans where he spent time exploring and relaxing. We’re happy to have him back and doing what he does best.
If you’re interested in having Josh and our team in your corner, reach out to us today.