Nicholas Klissas is Senior Commercial Legal Reform Advisor in USAID's Bureau for Economic Growth Agriculture & Trade, where he specializes in World Trade Organization accession assistance and commercial law projects. A lawyer, Mr. Klissas has over 12 years of federal government experience, including the Soviet & European Affairs Directorate of the National Security Council (1985-87), the Democracy and Human Rights Bureau of the State Department (1992-95), and the Commercial Law Development Program of the Commerce Department (1995-97). Between 1989 and 1992, Mr. Klissas also worked with Brown & Wood, a Wall Street law firm, where he specialized in municipal finance. Mr. Klissas has a BSFS degree from Georgetown University, an MIA from Columbia University, and a JD from the University of Virginia. Mr. Klissas was selected to become a Presidential Management Intern in 1983. In 2002, Mr. Klissas ran as a candidate for New York State Assembly.