Duane Zobrist

Duane H. Zobrist is a Senior Counsel in the firm’s Virginia office and a veteran attorney with decades of experience in corporate and international business law. He brings strategic insight, global perspective and cross-border fluency to every client engagement. His practice focuses on business and tax structuring, banking and finance, securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions and international trade and investment transactions.

Mr. Zobrist has a distinguished career advising clients on complex, high-value transactions across the United States, Latin America and other global markets. Prior to joining Musick Peeler, he was the founder and principal of Zoblaw for over 20 years. Earlier in his career, he was a senior partner at Carlsmith Ball, a leading Pacific Rim law firm with offices throughout the Pacific Basin, including Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and Mexico City.

Mr. Zobrist has held leadership positions in numerous international legal and trade organizations, equipping him with a rare ability to navigate the intersection of business, law and policy across jurisdictions. He served as a Trustee of the Brazil-California Trade Association from 1974 to 1991 and held the position of President from 1979 to 1981 and again from 1991 to 1994. He also chaired the U.S.–Mexico Chamber of Commerce from 1994 to 1998 and co-authored The Businessman’s Legal Guide to Doing Business in the United States in 1992. From 2005 to 2007 and again from 2010 to 2013, he served as a Commissioner on the Albemarle County Planning Commission in Virginia.

Mr. Zobrist earned his A.B. from the University of Utah and his J.D. from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law. Fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese, Mr. Zobrist has lived and worked extensively abroad, further deepening his international expertise.

Admissions & Associations

State Bar of California

State Bar of Virginia