Julissa Reynoso
Partner
Julissa has extensive legal and policy experience, engaging both as a lawyer in private practice and as an experienced senior diplomat and policymaker on behalf of the U.S. government.
A member of the firm’s Executive Committee and a multilingual partner, Julissa focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation, regulatory enforcement, international arbitration, and cross-border disputes. She provides U.S. and international clients with strategic advice and risk assessment in managing transnational issues. She advises a wide variety of clients, including institutions, companies, and individuals over a myriad of sectors.
Julissa’s extensive experience includes analyzing and advising on complex cross-border litigations, investigations, and disputes before U.S. courts and federal agencies. She has conducted arbitrations under major international rules, including the ICC and UNCITRAL, and managed a host of bilateral investment treaty disputes.
Julissa recently served as U.S. Ambassador to Spain and Andorra and was the first woman to hold the position. In her role as Ambassador, Julissa oversaw a critical U.S. mission with a host of U.S. federal agencies covering economic, political, and defense and security matters. She was a tireless advocate for American companies doing business in Spain and supported historic levels of investment by Spanish companies in the U.S. During her tenure, Spain was the host of the 2022 NATO Summit and held the presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Prior to being confirmed as Ambassador, Julissa served as Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff to the First Lady, holding one of the most senior positions at the Biden White House. While at the White House, Julissa managed a range of domestic and international matters for the President. Julissa served as Co-Chair of the Gender Policy Council; the first policy council focused on gender within the Executive Office of the President.
Julissa is the former U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay under the Obama Administration and served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. While in this role, she was charged with developing comprehensive security and rule-of-law strategies for Central America and the Caribbean. Prior to joining the U.S. Department of State, Julissa practiced at a major international law firm, where she specialized in antitrust law, international commercial arbitration, and international investment arbitration.
Key Matters
- Represented an international telecommunications company with its global compliance programs
- Represented an international energy company in various federal investigative matters in the U.S.
- Represented an energy company in an international arbitration related to the termination of a purchase-and-sale contract
- Represented a global IT company in connection with World Bank sanctions settlement
- Represented U.S. and Latin America media companies in commercial disputes resulting from the fallout of the FIFA scandal
- Represented a municipality in Puerto Rico in connection with disputes arising from the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico’s restructuring process in English and Spanish proceedings
- Counsel to a major multinational Central American company in all its disputes and regulatory matters
- Represented a real estate investment management firm in a NAFTA claim
- Represented a multinational food manufacturing company in connection with compliance issues in Central America and México
Julissa is the recipient of the highest diplomatic honors bestowed by several Latin American and European governments. She was honored with damehood by King Felipe VI of Spain in July 2024, receiving the Grand Cross of the Order of Isabel the Catholic (La Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel La Católica) for her exceptional career and contributions to bilateral relations between the U.S. and Spain. She is also the recipient of various public interest awards, including recognitions from Columbia University, New York University, the North Star Fund, The Legal Aid Society and the Hispanic National Bar Foundation.
Other recognitions that have been bestowed upon Julissa include:
- Named among the 2025 Lawdragon “500 Leading Litigators in America” for Complex Commercial Litigation, Cross-Border Disputes
- Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, 2024
- Medal of Honor of the LL.M. in European Union Law, Universidad Carlos III, Madrid, 2023
- Top 100 Female Lawyers in Latin America by Latinvex, 2024
- Recognized as a “New York Litigation Star” by Benchmark Litigation US, 2020
- Selected as a member of The American Law Institute, 2020
- Named a 2019 New York Law Journal “NY Trailblazer” and “Distinguished Leader”
- Recognized in Legal 500 US 2018 for International Arbitration
- Included in the inaugural list of “Leading Women Lawyers in New York City” by Crain’s
- Various awards and citations from the U.S. Department of State
- Young Global Leader, World Economic Forum
- Order of the Quetzal, Guatemala’s highest honor
- Order of Del Valle, Honduras’s highest honor
- Soros Fellowship for New Americans
- De Jersey Harvard Scholar
Julissa is a former fellow and instructor at the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University’s School of Law. She is a co-founder of a legal clinic and former president of the board at the Northern Manhattan Coalition for Immigrant Rights, where she developed an immigrant legal defense project and legal clinic with Columbia University School of Law, a major international law firm, and The Legal Aid Society. She is a former associate director for the Office of Accountability and Office of the Chancellor at the New York City Department of Education, where she supervised more than 300 New York City public schools participating in a new accountability system that she helped design. She is a former fellow and instructor of the Project on Public Innovations at Columbia University’s School of Law.
In 2019, Julissa was appointed to co-chair New York Attorney General Letitia James’s transition committee. In this capacity, she advised Attorney General James as she defined office initiatives and recruited top legal talent to constitute her senior leadership team.
Julissa activities also include the following:
- Trustee, Columbia University
- Trustee, New York Presbyterian Hospital
- Member, American Law Institute
- Member, Council of Foreign Relations
- Member, American Bar Association
- Member, International Bar Association
- Member, New York City Bar Association
Key Matters
- Represented an international telecommunications company with its global compliance programs
- Represented an international energy company in various federal investigative matters in the U.S.
- Represented an energy company in an international arbitration related to the termination of a purchase-and-sale contract
- Represented a global IT company in connection with World Bank sanctions settlement
- Represented U.S. and Latin America media companies in commercial disputes resulting from the fallout of the FIFA scandal
- Represented a municipality in Puerto Rico in connection with disputes arising from the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico’s restructuring process in English and Spanish proceedings
- Counsel to a major multinational Central American company in all its disputes and regulatory matters
- Represented a real estate investment management firm in a NAFTA claim
- Represented a multinational food manufacturing company in connection with compliance issues in Central America and México
Credentials
Education
Julissa received her J.D. from Columbia University School of Law., where she served as Managing Editor of the Columbia Journal of Transnational Law. She received an M.Phil. with distinction from the University of Cambridge, and her B.A., magna cum laude, from Harvard University.
Admissions
- New York
Clerkships
- USDC - Southern District of NY for the Honorable Laura Taylor Swain
Languages
- Spanish
- English
- Portuguese
Related Insights & News
Publications
- “Cumpliendo nuestros compromisos en la crisis climatica,” El Pais (Opinion), Author, Aug. 29, 2022
- “Biden Gender Policy Council Leaders: We must fix the caregiving crisis COVID has created for women,” Fortune magazine (Opinion), Co-author with Jennifer Klein, Mar. 8, 2021
- “E Pluribus Unum is on the ballot this November,” The Washington Post (Opinion), Co-author with Dr. Jill Biden, Jul. 7, 2020
- “Asistencia judicial en materia arbitral,” El Mundo del Abogado, Co-author, May 2019
- “Interpreting Ambiguous Domestic and Foreign Arbitral Awards,” New York Law Journal, Co-author, Mar. 11, 2019
- “The Corruption Defense: Practical Considerations for Claimants,” Kluwer Arbitration Blog, Co-author, Jan. 22, 2019
- “Does México deal with the U.S. bode well for NAFTA?” Latin America Advisor, Co-author, Aug. 31, 2018
- “NAFTA Deal This Year?” Latin America Advisor, Co-author, Feb. 14, 2018
- “How Are the NAFTA Renegotiation Talks Progressing?” Latin America Advisor, Sept. 1, 2017
- “What Do New U.S. Goals Mean for NAFTA Talks?” Latin America Advisor, Jul. 31, 2017
- “Are Latin America’s Whistleblower Laws Working Out Well?” Latin America Advisor, May 8, 2017
- “What Are the White House’s Plans for Changing NAFTA?” Latin America Advisor, Apr. 5, 2017
- “Preparing for Changes to NAFTA,” Client Alert, Mar. 29, 2017
- “Will New Trade Talks Shake Up the Arbitration System?” Latin America Advisor, Mar. 21, 2016
- “Obama and Castro Meet in Wake of Further Regulatory Reforms,” Client Alert, Sept. 29, 2015
- “U.S.-Cuba Reset?” Client Alert, Dec. 23, 2014
- “Putting Out Fires Before They Start: Community Organizing and Collaborative Governance in the Bronx, U.S.A.” 24 Journal of Law and Inequality 213, Summer 2006
- “The Impact of Identity Politics and Public Sector Reform on Organizing and the Practice of Democracy,” 37 Columbia Human Rights Law Review 149, 2005
- “Antitrust Developments in the Media and Entertainment Industries,” The Antitrust Review of the Americas, Global Competition Review, Co-author, 2005
- “Towards a Regulatory Model for the New Workplace,” Labor History, Book Review, 2005
- Reviewed Katherine V. W. Stone’s, “From Widgets to Digits: Employment Regulation for the Changing Workplace,” 2004
- “Perspectives on Intersections of Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Other Grounds: Latinas at the Margins,” 7 Harvard Latino Law Review 63, 2004
- “Race, Censuses and Attempts at Racial Democracy,” 39 Columbia Journal of Transnational Law 533, Note, 2001
Speeches
- “J-NOBLE Speaker Series: An Afternoon with Julissa Reynoso,” Jefferies, Sept. 16, 2019
- “Domestication of Awards and Conflict of Interests,” Centro Brasileiro de Mediação e Arbitragem, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Nov. 28, 2018
- “Brazil-United States Tax Issues Post-Election,” São Paulo, Brazil, Nov. 27, 2018
- “Thorny privilege issues in international arbitration,” GAR Live São Paulo 2018, São Paulo, Brazil, Nov. 26, 2018
- “Idea & Vision: Latinos and U.S. Foreign Policy,” HNBA Plenary Networking Luncheon Program, San Francisco, CA, Sept. 7, 2018
- “Cross-Border Transactions: The Importance of Proactive Risk Management Under the U.S./México Regulatory Frame,” México City, México, Aug. 7, 2018
- “Uncertainty around NAFTA: Assessing the impact of the NAFTA renegotiations and planning for its eventual conclusions,” IJGlobal Mexico Energy & Infra Conference, México City, México, Jun. 21, 2018
- “Live Arbitration Summit,” Latin Lawyer-Global Arbitration Review, Miami, FL, Apr. 26, 2018
- “Seton Hall Law Ninth Annual Diversity Banquet,” Newark, NJ, Keynote Speaker, Apr. 11, 2018
- “International Trade & Investment: Free Trade or protectionism, are we going local? Brexit, NAFTA being renegotiated and others. What are the challenges and the opportunities?” Biennial IBA Latin American Regional Forum Conference, México City, México, Mar. 15, 2018
- “Seeking Extraordinary Mechanisms for Accountability,” 2018 Conference for Pro Bono Practice in The Americas, México City, México, Mar. 13, 2018
- “CIRDI et l’investissement étranger en Haïti,” CCAH, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, Mar. 2, 2018
- “La Convention du Centre International pour le Règlement des Différends Relatifs aux Investissements (CIRDI), quells Enjeux?” BID, CFI and CCAH Joint Conference, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, Jan. 18, 2018
- “Guide to Doing Business in Cuba Post-Castro and U.S. Embargo,” International Section of the New York State Bar Association, Antigua, Guatemala, Sept. 13, 2017
- “The Year in Review – Arbitration in the Age of Trump,” GAR Live New York, NY, Sept. 12, 2017
- “Recent Developments in Cross-Border Arbitration,” IMM Joint Conference 2017, Houston, TX, May 12, 2017
- “Live Arbitration Summit,” Latin Lawyer–Global Arbitration Review, Miami, FL, Apr. 27, 2017
- “The Arbitration Award, Remedies and Post Award Process,” American Bar Association, Feb. 28, 2017
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July 16, 2024
October 29, 2020
September 30, 2020