Julie
Spinelli

Partner

Vcard | Resume
International Arbitration - France
Spinelli, Julie « Julie Spinelli of Le 16 Law is sought after by clients to assist in a range of arbitration matters, including ad hoc and annulment proceedings. She is also equipped to handle ICC arbitration cases in various sectors, including aviation. »
International Arbitration client - Global
Spinelli, Julie « Julie is our go-to person for arbitration cases. She is very personable, easy to work with and very competent. »
International Arbitration client - Global
Spinelli, Julie « Julie truly understood our company. She made us feel comfortable and gave tailored advice, and she made us feel well taken care of. »
International Arbitration - France
Spinelli, Julie « Julie Spinelli of Le 16 - Avocats enters the rankings this year on the back of excellent market recognition. She is sought after by clients to assist in a range of arbitration matters, including ad hoc and annulment proceedings. She is also equipped to handle ICC arbitration cases in various sectors, including aviation. »
International Arbitration client - Europe
Spinelli, Julie « Julie Spinelli is a diligent, hard-working and efficient lawyer who excels in arbitration and litigation strategy. »
Legal 500, 2021
“Julie Spinelli is particularly remarkable, not only for her mastery of procedures and her files, but also for her level of English which I find much superior to what I have encountered in other firms.”
Legal 500, 2021
“Julie Spinelli is outstanding. Julie is comfortable handling both international commercial and investment treaty arbitrations with an enviable track record of success in both. A good oral advocate.”
Legal 500, 2021
“Julie Spinelli is a highly innovative and creative lawyer. She possesses a sixth sense when analysing matters, identifying and addressing highly complex issues, which will make her one of the best lawyers of her time. She possesses a rare perspicacity when dealing with clients and difficult matters.”
WWL International Arbitration, 2021
Julie is “truly excellent” and is “quickly becoming one of the biggest stars of the Parisian arbitration bar”
The Legal 500, 2020
“a bright lawyer who impresses with her ability to sum up complex ideas in very simple terms. She is truly tactical and greatly reactive. She is a good person to have at one’s own side in a difficult case.”
WWL International Arbitration, 2020
Julie is “an excellent arbitrator” who is hailed by peers as “a very talented lawyer of her generation”. She is “known for the quality of her work as well as her great communications skills”
Décideurs Juridiques/Leaders League
Julie has been identified as a “fighter” and among the “30 rising stars of the Paris bar recognized in their specialty for their talent, their commitment, their extraordinary career” in an article entitled “Business Lawyer: the next generation of 2020”
WWL International Arbitration, 2019
Julie is “‘always a pleasure to work with’ say peers, one of whom comments, ‘Julie is one of the best French lawyers I have worked with and is highly respected’”
Décideurs Magazine
Julie has been ranked in the 2021 Arbitrators list in the “Strong reputation” category

Main Areas of Expertise

  • International arbitration
  • Domestic arbitration
  • Arbitration-related litigation
  • Commercial litigation

Education

  • Paris Bar since 2009
  • LLM, International arbitration and litigation, University College London
  • Master 2 / DJCE International Business Law, Business Law Institut, Université Paul Cézanne (Aix-Marseille III)
  • Master 1 International and EU Law, Université Paul Cézanne (Aix-Marseille III)

Julie Spinelli enjoys a strong and recognised expertise in international arbitration. She acts as counsel in domestic or international arbitration proceedings, ad hoc or institutional (ICC, LCIA, ICSID, SCC, CMAP and UNCITRAL), for States as well as French and foreign companies in disputes in the sectors of energy, construction and engineering, aeronautical, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and hospitality.

She also represents clients in annulment, enforcement and arbitration-related court proceedings before French courts.

Julie regularly acts as an arbitrator.

Experience as counsel

Experience in commercial arbitration

  • Advising and representing a Dutch company specialised in the construction of steel structures in the context of an ICC arbitration initiated by the largest European company specialised in the steel production relating  to allegations of design defects on a tandem mill
  • Advising and representing several agents or business partners in arbitration proceedings against European companies in the aeronautical industries (both civil and military) in relation to claims for the wrongful termination of consultant agreements for allegations of corruption
  • Advising and representing a French armament company in an ICC arbitration against a Germano-Italian armament company in a commercial dispute governed by French law relating to alleged violations of intellectual property rights arising out of the sale of bomb shells
  • Advising and representing a French hotel management company in ad hoc arbitration proceedings against the owner of a hotel in French Polynesia in relation to the wrongful termination of a management contract due to the consequences of the COVID-19 crisis

 

Experience in investment arbitration

  • In her former firm, Julie represented Iranian investors against the Republic of Korea in an UNCITRAL arbitration initiated under the bilateral investment treaty between Iran and Korea in relation to the expropriation of an investment in home appliance industrial company (Mohammad Reza Dayyani, et al. v. The Republic of Korea, PCA Case No. 2015-38) that led to a favourable award for 68 million USD against the Republic of Korea on June 5, 2018
  • In her former firm, Julie represented Muhammet Cap & Sehil Inşaat Endustri ve Ticaret Ltd. Sti. against Turkmenistan in an ICSID arbitration initiated pursuant to a bilateral investment treaty in relation to 31 disputed construction projects in Turkmenistan (Muhammet Cap & Sehil Inşaat Endustri ve Ticaret Ltd. Sti. v. Turkmenistan, ICSID Case No. ARB/12/6) (until November 2018)

 

Experience before national courts

  • Advising and representing a Middle-Eastern state in an action to set aside an ICC award rendered against a French equipment manufacturer and industrial assembler, which alleged that the recognition and the enforcement of the award would violate international public policy and where a stay of enforcement was requested
  • Advising and representing two Indonesian companies in an action to set aside an ICC award rendered against a European aeronautical group, which alleges that the recognition and enforcement of the award would violate international public policy on account of allegations of corruption and where a stay of enforcement was requested

 

 

Experience as arbitrator

  • Sole arbitrator in an ICC case between a German and a French company in the biotech sector related to the alleged wrongful termination of a distribution agreement
  • Sole arbitrator in an ICC case related to the termination of a distribution agreement between an Italian and a US company in the retail industry, where a number of IP and trademarks issues arose
  • Sole arbitrator in a CMAP case related to the alleged wrongful dismissal of a French company director

Relevant activities

  • Co-chair of the below-40 organisation of the French Arbitration Committee (Comité Français de l’Arbitrage (CFA-40))
  • Founding member of Africarb, a group of young legal professionals with a shared interest in arbitration and Africa
  • Member of the arbitration group at the French National Bar Council (CNB),
  • Visiting lecturer at the Centre for Mediation and Arbitration of Paris (CMAP)

Recent publications

  • France Chapter of the Law Over Borders Comparative Guide Arbitration, The Global Legal Post (with Carl Szymura)
  • Chapitre “France”, in The International Comparative Legal Guide to Investor State Arbitration, ICLG 2020 (with Yann Dehaudt-Delville)
  • Chapitre “France”, in Getting the Deal Through “Sovereign Immunity”, Lexology 2020 (with Yann Dehaudt-Delville)
  •  Global Arbitration Review Litigation Know-How – Chapter France
  • “L’arbitrage et les petits litiges”, in 3ème édition des Cahiers de l’Arbitrage du Conseil National des Barreaux (with Jean-Robin Costargent)
  • “The gathering and taking of evidence under the IBA Guidelines on party representation in international arbitration: civil and common law perspectives” (2014) 8 Dispute Resolution International 37 (with Gisele Stephens-Chu)
  • “Bilateral option clause – importance of clear and unequivocal wording”, International Law Office, 2014, (with Elie Kleiman)
  • “NML v Argentina: Supreme Court tightens waiver of sovereign immunity test”, International Law Office, 2013 (with Elie Kleiman)
  • “Dallah: one test, two different findings”, International Law Office, 2011 (with Elie Kleiman)
  • “La réforme du droit de l’arbitrage, sous le double signe de la lisibilité et de l’efficacité”, Gazette du Palais, 2011, n° 26-27, p. 9 (with Elie Kleiman)
  • “New arbitration law reform: the market’s verdict”, International Law Office, 2011 (with Elie Kleiman)
  • “Long-awaited arbitration law reform finally passed”, International Law Office, 2011 (with Elie Kleiman)
  • “La Haute juridiction écarte une nouvelle fois l’application de l’obligation de modérer le dommage en droit français de la responsabilité délictuelle”, Gazette du Palais, 2009, No 84-85, p 10 (with Shaparak Saleh)

Recent conferences