Robert C Dewar

Robert C. Dewar

Helping Scottish companies break into the US market

GlobalScot, Robert C. Dewar, places great emphasis on meticulous planning and preparation for companies planning to set up business in the States. One of America’s foremost lawyers, he has helped many Scottish companies get established, grow and succeed, from one-man Internet start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises to large companies in the financial sector.

"This is a big country and the logistics of doing business here can be daunting if the venture is not properly co-ordinated, planned and staffed. Those companies that have enjoyed the greatest success are those prepared to do that planning and get things well organised before getting on the plane."

A partner in the firm Williams Mullen in Richmond, Virginia, Bob Dewar advises and assists a number of Scottish companies in connection with their business in the US and regularly advises US corporations in connection with international legal issues.

He began his distinguished legal career in Scotland, completing an honours law degree in Edinburgh and qualifying as a solicitor in 1986. He then completed a "stage" (training course) at the European Commission in 1988, moving in the same year to the US where he re-qualified as a lawyer and joined an international law firm based in Richmond, working in Virginia for six years. In 1996, he was posted to London and worked there for five years setting up his firm’s London office and qualifying as a solicitor in England and Wales. During this time he was involved with transactional work throughout Europe on behalf of both US and European companies. In 2001, he relocated back to Virginia and now divides his time between Richmond and Washington, D.C.

Around this time, he contacted Scottish Enterprise to establish a link with Scottish companies who were looking to break into the US and needed legal advice and assistance to do this. This entailed frequent trips to Scotland, during which Bob runs seminars at various SE locations around the country. His aim is to educate Scottish companies about breaking into the US market and the issues they will need to face when they arrive.
The formation of the GlobalScot Network by Scottish Enterprise in 2001 allowed Bob to make himself more available to Scottish companies.

"The whole process of companies trying to go international at that point became much more structured. The GlobalScot initiative definitely added a new, more practical, dimension to the SE programme."

Besides his regular seminar programme, Bob offers companies a wide range of support and useful advice, covering licensing, exporting, negotiating sales and the regulatory environment. He can also help with trade missions, business partnerships, business plan appraisal and access to finances. He describes Scottish companies as creative and hard-working and has found it exciting to see so many of them enter the US market and succeed.

"The Scottish Government gave me a great start to my career so working with the GlobalScot Network is the least I can do in terms of giving back to Scotland. And it’s a win-win situation. The Scottish companies benefit from this programme, the Scottish Government benefits through an expansion of the economy and I find it both personally and professionally very rewarding"