Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón

Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón (born January 2, 1975) is a Dominican-American attorney and diplomat. She is the current chief of staff to first lady Jill Biden. She formerly served as a litigation and international arbitration partner with the international law firm Winston & Strawn LLP.[1] She was previously a partner with Chadbourne & Parke LLP, practicing in the firm's International Arbitration and Latin America groups.[2][3] Reynoso is also affiliated with the faculty at Columbia University School of Law and the School of International and Public Affairs.[4][5] From March 2012 until December 2014, she served as United States Ambassador to Uruguay. She is a former Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the United States Department of State.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Reynoso and the second or maternal family name is Pantaleón.
Julissa Reynoso Pantaleón
Chief of Staff to the First Lady
Assumed office
January 20, 2021
PresidentJoe Biden
Preceded byStephanie Grisham
Co-Chair of the White House Gender Policy Council
Assumed office
January 20, 2021
Serving with Jennifer Klein
PresidentJoe Biden
Preceded byPostion Established
United States Ambassador to Uruguay
In office
May 9, 2012 – December 10, 2014
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byDavid D. Nelson
Succeeded byKelly Keiderling
Personal details
Born (1975-01-02) January 2, 1975
Salcedo, Dominican Republic
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
EducationHarvard University (BA)
Emmanuel College, Cambridge (MPhil)
Columbia University (JD)

Early life and education

A native of the Dominican Republic, Reynoso immigrated to the United States in 1982.[6] She graduated valedictorian of her class at Aquinas High School in the Bronx. She was admitted to Harvard University, where she helped found several student groups and was active with The Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government.[7]

After earning an A.B. in government from Harvard University in 1997,[8] Reynoso was named the John Harvard Scholar and earned a Master of Philosophy in development studies in 1998 from Emmanuel College, Cambridge. Reynoso also earned a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School in 2001. At Columbia, she was the editor for the Columbia Journal of Transnational Law. Her graduate studies were supported by The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans.[9] [10]After law school, she clerked for Judge Laura Taylor Swain.[11]

Career

In 2008, Reynoso was active in the Hillary Clinton 2008 presidential campaign before joining the Barack Obama 2008 presidential campaign.[12]

Prior to joining the Obama administration, Reynoso was an attorney in private practice at the international law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP in New York. Reynoso resided in the Washington Heights neighborhood in Manhattan and served on the boards of several non-profit groups. She also served as a legal fellow at Columbia Law School and the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University School of Law.

In 2006, Reynoso served as deputy director of the Office of Accountability in the New York City Department of Education. Reynoso has published widely in both Spanish and English on a range of issues including regulatory reform, community organizing, housing reform, immigration policy and Latin American politics for both popular press and academic journals.

Reynoso is a member of the Council of Foreign Relations and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.[13] Reynoso is the recipient of various public interest awards, including recognitions from Columbia University, New York University, the NorthStar Foundation, the Legal Aid Society, and the Hispanic National Bar Foundation. She serves on the boards of several nonprofit and advocacy organizations. She is also a member of a Washington D.C.-based Western Hemisphere think tank, the Inter-American Dialogue.[14]

Obama administration

In 2009, Reynoso joined former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. During her tenure, Reynoso was charged with developing and implementing a comprehensive security and rule of Law strategy for Central America and the Caribbean.[15]

In October 2011, President Barack Obama expressed his intention to nominate Reynoso as United States Ambassador to the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, a nomination that required the advice and consent of the United States Senate.[16][17] On March 30, 2012, the U.S. Senate confirmed Reynoso as United States Ambassador to Uruguay. As an ambassador, Reynoso focused on trade and commerce, with particular interest in agricultural trade, and on science, technology and education cooperation.

Biden administration

In November 2020, Reynoso was named Chief of Staff to the then—incoming first lady of the United States, Jill Biden.[18]

Recognition

Reynoso was recognized in Crain's New York's 2017 "List of Leading Women Lawyers in NYC".[19][20]

She and her colleague Nicole Silver were recognized in Latinvex's 2017 ranking of "Latin America's Top 100 Female Lawyers."[21][22]

In 2017, Winston & Strawn was ranked as an international firm for its Latin America practice, of which Reynoso is a member, in the International Arbitration category.[23][24]

References
  1. "Julissa Reynoso - Litigation Partner - Winston & Strawn LLP". February 5, 2018.
  2. Londoño, Ernesto (January 22, 2015). "Meet the Diplomats Leading the U.S.-Cuba Talks".
  3. "US Ambassador to Uruguay to Join Chadbourne's International Arbitration & Latin America Practice Groups".
  4. "Julissa Reynoso".
  5. Q&A: JULISSA REYNOSO, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO URUGUAY
  6. "La dominicana Julissa Reynoso será la jefa del gabinete de la primera dama de Estados Unidos". Listín Diario (in Spanish). EDITORA LISTIN DIARIO, S.A.
  7. "Former Scholars (1996-2018)". hcs.uraf.harvard.edu. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  8. "Being Latina at Harvard and Beyond". Fas.harvard.edu. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  9. "Julissa Reynoso in The Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships For New Americans". August 14, 2012 – via Vimeo.
  10. "Meet the Fellows | Julissa Reynoso Pantaleon". www.pdsoros.org.
  11. "Julissa Reynoso Pantaleon, Chief of Staff to Dr. Jill Biden". President-Elect Joe Biden. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  12. "Hillary Clinton backers not quick to join Barack Obama campaign". NY Daily News. June 14, 2008. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  13. "Julissa Reynoso, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Central America and the Caribbean". usembassy.gov. February 9, 2010. Retrieved March 4, 2014.
  14. "Inter-American Dialogue | Julissa Reynoso". www.thedialogue.org. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
  15. "3 Latinos among first chosen for Biden White House senior staff". NBC News. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  16. "President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts | The White House". Whitehouse.gov. October 17, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  17. "epa - european pressphoto agency: Obama propone a la subsecretaria Julissa Reynoso como embajadora en Uruguay". October 17, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  18. Wilkie, Christina (November 17, 2020). "Biden picks for senior White House staff include loyalists, rising Democratic stars". CNBC. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  19. "Julissa Reynoso Recognized on Crain's 2017 List of Leading Women Lawyers in NYC". Winston & Strawn LLP. December 18, 2017.
  20. "Crain's Leading Women Lawyers in NYC 2018" (PDF). Crain's New York Business. December 2017.
  21. "Julissa Reynoso and Nicole Silver Recognized as Top 100 Female Lawyers in Latin America". Winston & Strawn LLP. May 24, 2017.
  22. "Latin America: Top 100 Female Lawyers". Latinvex. May 24, 2017.
  23. "The Legal 500 Latin America - International Arbitration". 2017.
  24. "Winston & Strawn Recognized in The Legal 500 Latin America 2017". Winston & Strawn LLP. September 6, 2017.
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
David D. Nelson		 United States Ambassador to Uruguay
2012–2014		 Succeeded by
Kelly Keiderling
Political offices
Preceded by
Stephanie Grisham		 Chief of Staff to the First Lady
2021–present		 Incumbent
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