Yelena Ambartsumian
Of Counsel
Art and intellectual property attorney
Yelena Ambartsumian combines her passion for contemporary art as a collector with her professional experience as an attorney handling high-stakes, cross-border litigation, and regulatory investigations. As Of Counsel for Amineddoleh & Associates, LLC, Yelena counsels clients on intellectual property, litigation, and transactional matters.
Yelena’s experience includes working as General Counsel responsible for contract negotiation and environmental data sales for ZUVIC Inc., an engineering consulting company based in Connecticut, as well as working as a senior associate at a premier global law firm, in their Litigation & Arbitration group. Her experience as a litigator in high-profile business and bet-the-company disputes informs her approach to contract drafting and avoiding potential pitfalls from the outset.
In addition to her experience as an attorney, she also founded and ran a collection management and trading insights platform for emerging contemporary art (Origen) with over $6 million of inventory. Yelena frequently researches, speaks, and writes on Armenian cultural heritage issues, and is co-founder of QAMI JAN, a lifestyle brand.
Education
Yelena received her Juris Doctor (cum laude) from Fordham University School of Law, where she was awarded the Archibald R. Murray Public Service Award (summa cum laude) for her commitment to pro bono work, was a regional quarterfinalist in the Phillip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, and served as a Copyright Law Teaching Assistant to Professor Hugh C. Hansen.
She graduated from Fordham University College at Lincoln Center, Honors Program, with a B.A. in Political Science (Awarded Departmental Honors), a B.A. in Spanish Language and Literature (Awarded Departmental Honors), and a minor in Theology.
Bar Admissions
Admitted in New York State
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
Authorized House Counsel in Connecticut for ZUVIC Inc.
Selected Speaking Engagements
Speaker, “How to Build a Lasting Art Collection,” Atamian Hovsepian (April 2024).
“Pathways to Peace: the Role of Diplomacy and Peacebuilding in Advancing Human Rights During Conflict,” Columbia Law School (March 2024).
Panelist, “Erased: Protecting Cultural Heritage in Times of Armed Conflict,” 30th Annual Intellectual Property Law Journal Symposium, Fordham Law School (October 2022).
Panelist, “Cultural Heritage at Stake: How to Preserve, Mitigate Damage, and Punish Destruction,” American University of Armenia (Yerevan, Armenia), Center for Truth and Justice Inaugural International Conference (June 2022).
Panelist, “The Caucasian Albanian Palimpsest and Cultural Erasure in Nagorno Karabakh,” Zoravik (December 2021).
Panelist, “Everything You Wanted to Know About Art Collecting (But Were Too Afraid to Ask),” Whitney Museum of American Art (May 2019).
Panelist, “The Dispute Between the Armenian Church and the Getty Museum over the Lost Armenian Canon Tables,” New York City Bar Association, Armenian Bar Association Annual Meeting (May 2014).
Selected Publications
“European Parliament ‘Strongly Condemns’ Azerbaijan’s Destruction of Armenian Heritage,” HYPERALLERGIC (March 2022)
“International Court of Justice Rules Azerbaijan Must Stop Destroying Armenian Cultural Heritage in Artsakh,” HYPERALLERGIC (December 2021)
“Why Armenian Cultural Heritage Threatens Azerbaijan’s Claims to Nagorno-Karabakh,” HYPERALLERGIC (February 2021)
“Courts Find ‘Your Art Dealer is Not Your Friend’: Due Diligence Requirements for Purchasers of Artwork,” New York State Bar Assoc., Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law Journal (Summer 2015)
“The Dispute Between the Armenian Church and the Getty Museum over the Lost Armenian Canon Tables,” American Bar Association, Art and Cultural Heritage Law Newsletter (Summer 2012)
Research Assistant, Visual Arts and the Law: A Handbook for Professionals (focusing on research and drafting assistance for “Principles of Copyright” chapter discussing U.S. and U.K. copyright laws), Judith Prowda and Sotheby’s Institute of Art (Lund Humphries 2013)