Kish Parella Featured Speaker at VALET Program Annual Meeting The program provides guidance and resources to Virginia companies engaged in global markets.

By Law Communications
April 21, 2026

Kish Parella, professor of law at Washington and Lee University School of Law, served as a featured speaker at the annual meeting of participants in the Virginia Leaders in Export Trade (VALET) program.

Parella’s presentation, titled “Future-Ready International Operations: Strategy and Governance to Enable Global Growth,” explored the concept of “corporate foreign policy”—how companies can define and communicate their values through strategic decisions about market entry, exit, and engagement in global markets. Her remarks emphasized the importance of aligning business operations with international law, human rights standards, and long-term organizational strategy.

Drawing on her expertise in international business transactions and corporate compliance, Parella outlined practical approaches for structuring governance systems, contracts, and risk management strategies in increasingly complex and volatile geopolitical environments. Participants were introduced to a framework designed to help organizations intentionally engineer decision-making processes with foreign partners while maintaining consistency with core institutional values.

The VALET program, administered by the Virginia Economic Development Partnership, provides a comprehensive platform for Virginia companies committed to international exporting as a growth strategy. Through a combination of financial support and advisory services, the program assists firms in developing and executing export strategies that enhance their competitiveness in global markets.

Parella teaches business associations, contracts, corporate compliance, international business transactions, and corporate social responsibility at Washington and Lee School of Law. She also serves on the Executive Council of the American Society of International Law and is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation.

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