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Mission Statement
Los Abogados is Arizona's Hispanic Bar Association. Los Abogados was founded in 1976 and incorporated in 1988. The primary purposes of Los Abogados are: to enhance the quality of legal services provided to the Community; to educate the Hispanic community regarding its rights and remedies and the availability of legal services; to receive and administer funds for the promotion and advancement of the Hispanic legal profession within the State of Arizona; to aid in gathering, exchanging and disseminating facts and information relating to the business methods within the Hispanic legal profession, all with a view of promoting the business of the Hispanic legal profession within the State of Arizona. Los Abogados is an affiliated member of the Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA). Goals and Achievements
Los Abogados established the Valdemar Cordova Scholarship in cooperation with Arizona State University College of Law and University of Arizona College of Law in 1986. The scholarships are named in honor of Valdemar Cordova who was the first Hispanic Federal Judge in the Phoenix Division of the United States District Court of Arizona. The scholarships are awarded to law students who demonstrate an interest in service to the Hispanic community. Los Abogados has also established an endowment fund with the Arizona Community Foundation. All members are encouraged to participate in the endowment fund by pledging $1000 to be donated over a period of several years. Approximately fifty members have participated to date. In 1992, Los Abogados led the effort to amend the Arizona State Constitution to provide for diversity in the merit selection of judges. The constitutional amendment commonly know as Proposition 109 provided for racial, ethnic, gender and geographical diversity in the membership of trial and appellate court appointment commissions. Proposition 109 also amended the constitution to include diversity as consideration in the selection of judicial candidates. Proposal 109 has resulted in the increased nomination of minorities and women in fact rarely is a list of Judicial candidates submitted to the Governor that does not include minorities. Since the passage of Proposition 109 the number of Hispanic state judges has more than doubled. Members of Los Abogados presently serve as officers and directors of state, county and federal bar associations. Los Abogados, through these officers and directors and its liaisons, cooperates, coordinates and communicates with these bar associations on issues affecting the legal community. Los Abogados has recently established a legal defense fund to provide funding for litigation involving issues affecting the Hispanic community such as the A English Only and the immigration and constitutional due process issues involved in the Chandler Round-Up cases Los Abogados Committees
By joining a committee, members can network with other members, meet people
with similar interests, and help improve the communities that we serve. A list
of Los Abogados committees, chairs, and contact information is below. If you
are interested in joining a committee, please contact the chair(s) directly.
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Board of Directors
President: Lizzette Alameda Zubey President Elect: Salvador Ongaro Past President: Lori A. Higuera Treasurer: Erica Gonzalez-Melendez Secretary: Alisha M. Villa Newsletter Editor: Jessica Sanchez Michael Breeze Antonio Bustamante January F.E. Contreras Virginia Herrera-Gonzales Ted Mariscal Alex Navidad Sal J. Rivera Monica Ryden Margarita Silva Gaetano (Guy) Testini Juan Pablo G. Zaragoza |
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