James A. Gerard is the Managing Director of the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s Threshold Program, which works with countries that aspire to become compact-eligible. In that capacity, James leads multi-disciplinary teams to design and implement policy and institutional reform programs that seek to alleviate a country's most binding constraints to economic growth and promote more accountable and effective governance.
James joined MCC in 2005 as an Assistant General Counsel, advising teams in the development, negotiation, and implementation of compacts with countries across the globe, including Armenia, El Salvador, Morocco, and Malawi. Prior to taking on his current position, he served as MCC’s country team lead for the development of the $277 million El Salvador Investment Compact. James brings extensive private sector experience to MCC, having practiced law internationally for more than a decade at White & Case LLP in New York, Mexico City, and Milan. He has advised major banks, corporations, and government entities on numerous cross-border transactions, including structured financings, securities offerings, mergers and acquisitions, and commercial matters.
James is a graduate of Georgetown University, where he earned a B.A. in government and a J.D. in law. He speaks Spanish, Italian, and some French. He is married and has two children.