Ruchi Gill Named a 2025 International Trade Rising Star
Ruchi Gill, a counsel in Latham’s White Collar Defense & Investigations Practice, has been recognized as a 2025 Rising Star by Law360 in the International Trade category. Based in Washington, D.C., Ruchi quickly established herself as a trusted counselor for US and international companies navigating the global market. She regularly represents clients before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) and other national security regulators, including the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the US Commerce Department, and the US State Department. Her breadth and depth of experience across sanctions, export controls, and the CFIUS clearance process drive her service to clients engaged in complex multijurisdictional transactions.
Law360 honored Ruchi for, among other things, her work in landmark CFIUS matters and negotiating significant national security agreements with the US government. One of her most notable cases in the past year involved a CFIUS matter for Desktop Metal, a 3D printing company, in which she helped negotiate CFIUS-related provisions in the transaction agreement, guide the CFIUS process, and advise on a related Delaware court litigation, leading to a successful transaction closing.
Before joining Latham, Ruchi served as Deputy Chief Counsel for the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, advising on legal and oversight matters, legislative activity, and nominations related to US foreign policy and national security. From 2007 to 2017, she held various roles at the State Department, including attorney-adviser and special assistant to the Legal Adviser, foreign affairs officer, and economic officer in Guangzhou, China. She participated in bilateral and multilateral consultations and negotiations, advising on economic sanctions, export controls, foreign sovereign immunity, cyberactivity, international arbitration, and treaty negotiation and interpretation.
Ruchi’s work as an international trade lawyer grew out of her extensive government experience in foreign policy and national security issues. She is motivated by the challenges faced by clients, ranging from small tech startups to large multinational corporations and financial institutions, in complying with complex, evolving laws and regulations.
"When I pivoted to the private sector, I was naturally inclined towards this practice because it is government-facing in the national security space," Ruchi said. "Sanctions, export controls, and CFIUS are tools in a national security and foreign policy toolbox that may evolve in the way in which they are used, but they are not going away.”
Among Ruchi's proudest moments as a lawyer was being part of a Latham team that helped a group of Afghan siblings obtain asylum in the United States. These unaccompanied minors traveled to the United States on a government evacuation flight during the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. Ruchi and the team received the Pro Bono Team of the Year award from Kids in Need of Defense for their representation of the siblings.