Meredith Fensom joined Allen F. Johnson & Associates (AFJ), LLC in September 2008 as Manager. Ms. Fensom's position with the firm draws upon her diverse business, legal, government and academic experiences to assist clients in the development of global business and marketing strategies, government relations, and importing and exporting agricultural and industrial products and services.

She assists clients with a variety of market and regulatory compliance issues, including U.S. Customs clearance and technical assistance and training on U.S. labeling requirements for food products. Ms. Fensom advises clients on U.S. food safety regulations and analyzes import requirements and identifies market opportunities throughout the world. She is well-versed in the creation, operation and regulation of Export Trading Companies. Ms. Fensom assists clients in the resolution of market access issues, including WTO case preparation, and has carried out capacity building work in various countries. She has served as a consultant to various multinational institutions including the Inter-American Development Bank and the United Nations’ International Trade Centre.

Before joining AFJ, Ms. Fensom served as the Special Assistant in the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), Office of the Americas, including working with bilateral and regional trade agreements. Prior to joining USTR, Ms. Fensom was the founding director of the Law & Policy in the Americas Program at the University of Florida with responsibilities managing judicial reform projects throughout Latin America and teaching law courses focused on legal systems in the Americas.

Ms. Fensom has litigated matters of international law and was a Fulbright Scholar in Santiago, Chile, where she assisted in the design and evaluation of Chile's judicial reform process. She was also awarded CIBER and FLAS Fellowships to Brazil.

She has been engaged in many activities over the years analyzing the impact of trade agreements on countries, regions and the world, including publications and speaking engagements throughout the Americas. She co-authored the Latin American Business Environment Report in 2006 and 2007.

Ms. Fensom received a J.D. from the University of Florida Levin College of Law and is a member of the Florida Bar. She received a Master’s Degree from the University of Florida Center for Latin American Studies. Her undergraduate degree is from Furman University, with a major in Political Science and concentration in Latin American Studies.

Ms. Fensom was raised in Florida. She is a fluent Spanish speaker and is conversant in Portuguese. Her interests include boating (United States Coast Guard Captain, License No. 839684), hiking, tennis and cooking. She is a member of the D.C. Gator Club Board of Directors.