Audi K. Syarief

Audi Syarief is a Senior Associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson Dunn and a member of the firm’s International Trade Practice Group. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center, where he teaches U.S. economic sanctions and export controls.

Audi advises clients on all aspects of U.S. economic sanctions and export controls, with significant experience in enforcement risk assessment, internal investigations, compliance program design, and restricted-party screening protocols. He routinely represents clients before OFAC, BIS, and DDTC, securing licenses and approvals, filing voluntary self-disclosures, responding to administrative subpoenas, and resolving enforcement matters. For his white-collar defense work, he has been recognized in Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch (2026).

He regularly conducts international trade due diligence in corporate transactions and financings, often on behalf of private equity firms. His practice spans U.S. and non-U.S. clients across industries, with a particular focus on jurisdictions like Burma, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Iran, Cuba, and North Korea. He is especially well-versed in sanctions authorizations and exemptions relating to telecommunications, internet, and virtual currency, and has advised leading social media platforms and fintech firms on leveraging these provisions.

Audi maintains an active pro bono practice. He has represented nonprofit organizations in trade matters and successfully secured asylum for clients from El Salvador and Indonesia. His team was named 2023 Pro Bono Attorneys of the Year by Kids In Need of Defense (KIND) and nominated for Gibson Dunn’s Frank Wheat Memorial Award. He has also been recognized on the D.C. Access to Justice Commission’s Pro Bono Honor Roll annually since 2016.

In addition to practice, Audi frequently publishes and speaks on sanctions and export control developments. He has chaired the Export Controls, Sanctions, and Anticorruption Subcommittee of the International Bar Association’s International Commerce and Distribution Committee and co-organized its 2024 Specialist Conference in Washington, D.C. He has also served on Law360’s International Trade Editorial Advisory Board.

Before joining Gibson Dunn, Audi clerked for the Honorable Timothy J. Kelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was an editor of the Virginia Law Review, and his B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University. At Rutgers, he helped organize Model United Nations conferences with the Institute for Domestic and International Affairs (IDIA), where he now serves on the board of directors, as well as on the board of the Rutgers Alumni Association.

Appointments and Recognition

• Georgetown University Law Center – Adjunct Professor of Law
• Institute for Domestic and International Affairs – Board of Directors
• Rutgers Alumni of Association – Board of Directors
• Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch (2026) for White Collar: Criminal Defense
• Global Trade Academy 2024 and 2025 – Faculty Member
• Export Compliance Training Institute – 2025 Special Topics Instructor
• International Bar Association – International Commerce and Distribution Committee – Chair of the Export Controls, Sanctions, and Anticorruption Subcommittee for 2023 and 2024
• Law 360’s International Trade Editorial Advisory Board for 2022 and 2023

Speaking Engagements

• Featured Speaker, “Know your Rights” Webinar on Sanctions, Iranian American Bar Association (July 31, 2025)
• Panelist, Careers in International Trade, Georgetown Law’s National Security Law Society, Washington, DC (Apr. 1, 2025)
• Guest Speaker, Seminar on ITAR Enforcement, Export Compliance Training Institute, Alexandria, Virginia (Apr. 1, 2025)
• Panelist, “Global Trade Compliance: Understanding U.S. Sanctions and Export Controls” (Feb. 26, 2025)
• Invited Speaker, “Annual Update on Global Sanctions Relating to Burma,” Burmese American Community Institute (Feb. 14, 2024)
• Panelist, "Complying with Economic Sanctions: What You Need to Know," Allegheny County Bar Association (Aug. 28, 2024)
• Lecturer, “Economic Sanctions and Export Controls in an Age of Geopolitical Rivalry,” 2024 Global Trade Academy: The Law and Policy of International Trade, Washington, DC (Apr. 16, 2024)
• Panelist, “Understanding U.S. Economic Sanctions on Cuba,” Miami-Dade Bar Association’s Florida Law Con (Apr. 12, 2024)
• Invited Speaker, “Global Sanctions Relating to Burma: Current State and What’s Next,” Burmese American Community Institute, Indianapolis, Indiana (Feb. 9, 2024)
• Invited Speaker, “U.S. Sanctions on Burma: An Overview from a Legal, Political, and Human Rights Perspective,” Asian American Bar Association (APABA) – Indiana Chapter, Indianapolis, Indiana (Feb. 9, 2024)
• Featured Speaker, “Guide to Complying with OFAC Sanctions Regulations,” The Knowledge Group (January 24, 2024)
• Panel Moderator, “Sanctions in the Era of the Russia-Ukraine War,” Georgetown University Law Center, 2023 Journal of National Security Law and Policy Symposium, Washington, DC (Mar. 8, 2023)
• Keynote Speaker, Philadelphia Model United Nations 2023 Conference: Exploring Development Through Diplomacy in Africa, Institute for Domestic and International Affairs, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Feb. 23, 2023)
• Invited Speaker, “Iran Sanctions: Current Events & Implications,” Iranian American Bar Association, Vienna, Virginia (Feb. 21, 2023)
• Panel Moderator, “Should I Stay or Should I Go Now: Navigating Global Sanctions on Russia,” International Bar Association (Oct. 4, 2022)
• Featured Speaker, “OFAC Regulations and Economic Sanctions Compliance Programs: Best Practices,” The Knowledge Group (Sept. 29, 2022)
• Panelist, “2020 Sanctions and Export Controls Update,” Gibson Dunn Webcast (Oct. 15, 2020)

Coauthored Publications

• “BIS Final Rule on Voluntary Self-Disclosure Process and Penalty Guidelines Highlights Significant Export Control Violations and Higher Penalties,” NYU Law’s Compliance & Enforcement Blog (Sept. 23, 2024)
• “United States Expands Sanctions Authorization of Internet-Based Activities in Wake of Protests in Iran,” NYU Law’s Compliance & Enforcement Blog (Oct. 17, 2022)
• “United States creates new sanctions regime over humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia,” Financier Worldwide (Nov. 2021)
• “United States sanctions against Myanmar’s military conglomerates,” Financier Worldwide (Jun. 2021)
• “Sanctions Enforcement Trends In the Era of COVID-19,” The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation (Feb. 24, 2021)
• “Privilege – United States,” Global Investigations Review’s Know How (Nov. 2016)