The Growing Filipino Legal Community: You are Not Alone

I consider myself the “My Cousin Vinny” of my family.  Despite an undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago and a law degree from DePaul College of Law, the economic crisis that began in 2008 hurt job prospects for many aspiring lawyers like myself.  Further, as a first generation law student and the only lawyer in my family, I did not have the right connections to propel me to a job at a law firm.

I was a lawyer who passed the bar exam in Illinois on the first try.  I thought to myself, if no firm was willing to extend a job offer to me, I would create my own job.  I had more than enough clients just in my own family.

My first case was an immigration case for my cousin.  She didn’t have money, and I didn’t have anything to do.  With that my business was born.  I then helped another cousin with a fiancé visa.  I did basic wills and powers of attorney for family friends.  I did some closings for neighbors and friends.  Then, I moved into family law and started to do divorces for friends of my parents.  I found my niche in family law.

I became more involved with the FALA, the Filipino American Lawyers Association of Chicago, because I not only wanted to grow my business but meet other Filipino attorneys and mentor law students.  In Chicago, I am inspired to see Filipino attorneys across several industries in large firms and small firms as well as Filipino judges on the bench.  With the growing numbers of Filipino law students, the future looks bright for Filipinos in the legal profession.  

From humble beginnings holding meetings at Little Quiapo to a national organization connecting Filipino legal professionals across the country, I want Filipinos in Chicago and across the country to know that Filipinos are a growing force in the legal community.  I especially want the Filipinos in Chicago to know that you have a growing number of advocates like myself willing and able to serve you.  Most importantly, I want young Filipinos interested in law school to know that Filipino lawyers like myself continue to pave the way for you to make your journey into the legal profession more successful.

I invite you all to learn about FALA Chicago by visiting our website at falachicago.org.  Thank you for reading.  Until we meet again, love one another.

Janice