Robert Kapla serves as the firm’s Public Policy Practice Group leader. A former White House official, Robert advises sovereign governments and counsels multinational corporations on government relations around the globe.
Governments and businesses alike increasingly struggle to manage their external risks, risks that develop and evolve beyond their borders and board rooms. Robert helps clients anticipate and mitigate a range of external risks – financial, political, legal, regulatory, reputational – that are crucial to advancing their strategic objectives.
As a trusted adviser, Robert assists foreign governments on a variety of subjects including foreign investment, international trade and trade policy, project development, territorial and other disputes, and international treaty negotiations. With respect to the private sector, Robert helps multinational companies navigate the complex political and regulatory issues often associated with doing business in the US and abroad. These include matters of international law, entry into foreign markets, cross-border transactions, tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade and dispute settlement.
Robert is a member of the District of Columbia, Colorado and American bar associations and the American Society of International Law. He has been a National Law Journal “DC Deal Maker of the Year” and authors and co-authors articles on the intersection of business, law and foreign policy.
Robert sits on the Board of Governors of the Middle East Institute and is active with several other organizations, including the Atlantic Council, Business Council for International Understanding, Meridian International Center and US-China Business Council. He also serves on the board of the Squire Patton Boggs Foundation, which advances the firm’s commitment to law, public policy and public service by providing fellowships to law students to work in public service organizations and government institutions around the world.
Speaker, “Mobilizing Diaspora Influence: Practical Tools for Advancing Bilateral Connection and Diplomatic Outcomes,” Meridian International Center, December 18, 2025.
Co-author, “Implications of Trump Budget Blueprint for US Stature Abroad,” Law360, March 2017.
Co-author, “TPP & TTIP bring change closer,” Speciality Chemicals Magazine, April 2016.
Co-author, “Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall…,” Country Promotion Strategies Guide, Washington Diplomat, November 2012.
“Lobbying Street,” GQ China, Katherine Lewis, June 2012.
Speaker, “How US Listed Chinese Companies Can Defend Against Class Action Lawsuits, SEC Investigations, and Short-Seller Attacks in the United States,” seminar hosted by the Association of US Listed Chinese Companies, Shanghai, China, July 21, 2011.
Co-author, “Guiding Foreign Governments Through the Complex Intersection of Business, Law, and Foreign Policy: The Rising Importance of Washington Counsel,” Business Law Brief American University Washington College of Law, Spring/Summer 2010.