Richard Schepard is a US-French lawyer with double American/French Nationality specializing in negotiation and preparation of International Commercial and Merger and Acquisition Agreements and in supervising International Litigation and Arbitration matters. He also acts as an arbitrator and mediator.

For over 40 years, Richard has practiced law as a partner/senior counsel in two major law firms, working mostly out of their respective Paris offices. In that capacity, he assisted public and private companies in their cross-border M&A and other operations, developed an expertise in negotiating and drafting various types of Commercial Agreements (including SPAs and related agreements, LBO documentation, licensing and distribution agreements as well as various other commercial type contracts) and provided senior level legal advice and counsel to clients including supervising numerous cross-border transactions and development and implementation of legal and litigation/arbitration strategies.

From 1977 to 1979, Richard served as Assistant General Counsel in the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he assisted then Secretary of Commerce Juanita Kreps and her team in implementing her agenda, including the US Export Control Regulations and the development of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and Anti-Boycott Regulations.

In addition to his professional experiences, Richard has also been teaching international business transactions and contract drafting in several universities around the world (Peking University in Shenzhen, China, Sciences-Po (IEP) Paris, Université Libre de Bruxelles, University of Paris V, Aix-en-Provence School of Law, Nice School of Law and Haifa School of Law).

Richard is a member of the New York and Paris bars. He received his BA from City College New York, and his JD from New York University School of Law (where he graduated first in class and was an Editor of the NYU Law Review). He was a Fulbright Scholar, spending the 1967-1968 academic year in France. He also has experience in compliance programs (creation and auditing).