Association of American Law Schools (AALS) selects Professor Juan Gomez, Ms. Zoraya Ledesma, and Ms. Jameesha Rock (3L) for Exceptional Pro Bono Work

The Association of American Law Schools (AALS) has selected Professor Juan Gomez, Ms. Zoraya Ledesma, and Ms. Jameesha Rock (3L) to the inaugural AALS Pro Bono and Access to Justice award (Honor Roll) for their exceptional work on behalf of underserved individuals with the goals of advancing access to justice.

FIU Law offers students the opportunity to learn about the law through real-life experiences through our Experiential Learning programs including our Pro Bono program where students can combine theory with practice.

Professor Juan Carlos Gomez has been defending the rights of individuals in immigration matters for over 30 years. Professor Gomez is the Director of the Carlos A. Costa Immigration Human Rights Clinic and leads many Pro Bono Efforts at the law school. “FIU’s College of Law’s pro bono efforts provide significant legal services to members of our community who cannot afford private counsel,” says Gomez.

The Pro Bono Program works under the guidance of Professor Phyllis Kotey and Ms. Zoraya Ledesma. “It is important for law students to know how their services impact the community from the moment they are law students to when they graduate,” says Ledesama. “This allows them to value their work once they are practicing attorneys.”

Third year law student Jameesha Rock is the President and Founder of the Student Mentorship Pro Bono program. Furthermore, she is the President of the Caribbean Student Bar Association, Vice President of both the Federal bar Association and the Real Property, Probate, and Trust Law Society.