Derek Ha

Associate
Derek is an Associate at ArentFox Schiff, based in the San Francisco office.
Derek Ha, Associate, Arent Fox LLP

Derek helps US and international companies navigate the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions, providing advice on regulatory compliance as well as political and reputational risks. He regularly handles matters such as export licensing applications, commodity classifications, and voluntary disclosures. His work extends to a range of cross-border compliance issues such as customs classifications and country of origin determinations; forced labor; Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) reviews; and investor-state arbitrations. 

Derek is experienced in complex civil litigation matters. He supports clients across a broad array of practice areas in commercial disputes, class actions, and other matters before state and federal courts.

Derek’s extensive pro bono work has included advocacy for voting rights, landlord-tenant issues, immigration, and LGBTQ+ rights. Most recently, he appeared as part of the trial team in La Unión del Pueblo Entero, et al. v. Abbott, et al. in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas, challenging Texas’s Senate Bill 1, which has made it harder for thousands of Americans to cast their vote.

Previous Work

Prior to joining ArentFox Schiff, Derek worked at an education start-up in China and was a paralegal in one of the country’s largest immigration law firms. During law school, he received the Prosser Award in Advanced Legal Writing, and he was an associate editor for the California Law Review and the Asian American Law Journal

Derek is one of the recipients of the 2020 ArentFox Schiff Diversity Scholarship.

Professional Activities

Derek is a member of the Asian American Bar Association and Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom.

Life Beyond the Law

Derek enjoys cooking with friends, exploring the Bay Area, bicycling, tennis, and singing with the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus.