Department of Commerce Announces Selection of ZTE Special Compliance Coordinator

Secretary of Commerce Wilbur L. Ross, Jr. announced the selection of Roscoe Howard, Jr. to be the Special Compliance Coordinator (SCC) for Zhongxing Telecommunications Equipment Corporation, of Shenzhen, China and ZTE Kangxun Telecommunications Ltd. of Hi-New Shenzhen, China (collectively, ZTE). The Special Compliance Coordinator was selected after a rigorous search by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). This appointment is the result of the historic settlement between the Department of Commerce and ZTE that includes a $1.761 billion fine, a ten-year probationary period, and the installation of the coordinator to conduct regular and comprehensive compliance supervision by a team answerable to BIS.

Howard is a Partner in Barnes & Thornburg’s Litigation Department in Washington, D.C.  He is a graduate of Brown University and earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.  He previously served as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia from 2001-2004.  Prior to his appointment, Mr. Howard was a tenured, full professor at the University of Kansas School of Law.  He has twice served as an Associate Independent Counsel under both Republican and Democrat Presidents and was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of Columbia and in the Eastern District of Virginia. Howard has served as an Associate Independent Counsel on two occasions. During his first occasion serving as an Associate Independent Counsel, Howard served as a lead prosecutor for the Office of Independent Counsel (OIC) investigating questionable programs, officials and activities at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under former Secretary Samuel R. Pierce, Jr. During his second occasion serving as an Associate Independent Counsel, Howard was lead trial counsel in the fraud, false statements and gratuities investigation and trial of former Secretary of Agriculture A. Michael Espy. 

The Special Compliance Coordinator’s function will be to coordinate, monitor, assess, and report on compliance with U.S. export control laws by ZTE, its subsidiaries, and affiliates worldwide. As stated in the Superseding Agreement and Order, the coordinator will operate with unprecedented access across the company.