2025 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Gina Fraga, President
Mrs. Fraga has devoted her entire legal career to defending the rights of our immigrants by focusing her practice in the complex and ever-changing field of Immigration and Nationality Law. She is a Partner at Acosta & Fraga Law, P.L.L.C., where she handles a heavy case load in areas such as deportation defense, family immigration, business immigration, equestrian-related immigration visas, self-petitions on behalf of victims and children, among others. She is a proud “double Gator” who received both her bachelor’s degree with honors and law degree from the University of Florida.
In addition to serving as a Board member of the Palm Beach Hispanic Bar Association since 2019, she has also been an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association where she chairs the AILA South Florida Chapter DMV Committee, serves as a member-at-large of the USCIS West Palm Beach Committee and previously served in the Unlicensed Practice of Law Committee. She is passionate about providing pro bono legal representation to children and women who are the victims of abuse or neglect and serves her community by providing outreach, education and assistance to charitable organizations such as Americans for Immigrant Justice, the Legal Aid Society of PBC and the Guatemalan-Maya Center in Lake Worth, Florida. Due to her outstanding work in the community she was awarded the 2019 Public Citizen Award from the National Association of Social Workers Palm Beach Chapter. She enjoys going back “home” to recharge at the beach in her little island of Puerto Rico where she was born and raised.
Angela Pagán, President-elect
Angela Pagán, Esq. is a criminal defense attorney in Palm Beach County. She graduated from the University of Florida with Honors and obtained two degrees, a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology. As an undergraduate student, Ms. Pagán became a Founding Sister of the Chi Chapter of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Inc., the first Latina/Hispanic sorority in the country, in Florida and at UF. Ms. Pagán started her legal career at the Office of the Public Defender in Palm Beach County, where she worked as an Investigator and Assistant Public Defender for over nine years. She left that office in 2012 to go into private practice and in 2014 she founded her firm, the Angie Pagán Law, PLLC, located in downtown West Palm Beach. Ms. Pagán is a Past President of the Palm Beach County Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. She sits as Co-Chair of the MacArthur’s Foundation Palm Beach County Racial and Ethnic Disparity Team and is a past member of the 15th Judicial Circuit’s Pro Bono Committee. Additionally, Ms. Pagan has also served as a volunteer Guardian Advocate for Baker Act cases in the 15th Judicial Circuit since 2012.
Alberto R. Leal, Vice President
Alberto R. Leal, Esq. is a solo practitioner based in the Lake Worth area and assists clients in the areas of Criminal Defense, Family Law, Disability Discrimination, Auto accidents and general civil litigation matters. A native of South Florida, Mr. Leal is uniquely positioned to serve the legal needs of clients given his fluency in both English and Spanish. Mr. Leal is a past recipient of the National Trial Lawyer’s Top 40 under 40 award and has been recognized a Rising Star by Super Lawyers. He is available for telephonic and virtual consultations.
Olga Patterson, ACP, FCP, FRP, Treasurer
Olga Patterson has been a paralegal since 1989 and earned her ACP in Discovery, Estate Planning and Trial Practice as well as the FCP and FRP designations. She is a NALA Advanced Certified Paralegal with more than 30 years of legal experience in the fields of Mass Torts, Medical Malpractice and Personal Injury Litigation. She currently works at Smith, Ball, Báez & Prather Florida Injury Attorneys in Palm Beach Gardens. She is active on several committees for the PBC Chapter of the Paralegal Association of Florida and is a past president. She currently serves on the board of the FL Bar Registered Paralegal Committee, Certifying Chair of the FCP Examining for the Paralegal Association of Florida, Chair of the Paralegal Committee of the Palm Beach County Bar Association and Past Chair of the FJA Paralegal/Legal Assistance Section. Olga is also a member of the paralegal section of the American Bar Association. She devotes her free time in helping fellow paralegals grow and become part of the legal community. She is a frequent speaker at the paralegal sections of local colleges.
Humberto Rivera, Recording Secretary
Humberto specializes in all types of Bankruptcies, both personal and business, and Personal Injury in South Florida and Puerto Rico. Formerly a litigator in Puerto Rico, he handled diverse cases, including personal injury and family law. With an undergraduate degree in Business Administration, with a minor in Computer Information Sciences, Humberto earned his law degree from the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico and a Master's in Ocean and Coastal Law from the University of Miami School of Law, after which he founded the Rivera Law Firm, P.A., a Bankruptcy and Personal Injury Law Firm.
Recognized as Top 40 under 40 by the National Trial Lawyers in 2021, Humberto excels in complex bankruptcy cases, advocating for debtors in adversary proceedings. Fluent in English and Spanish, he has secured favorable outcomes, which has also been affirmed by the U.S. District Court. Humberto's legal expertise is influenced by his father, a respected Personal Injury Attorney in Puerto Rico since the early '80s, who has passed on valuable insights and analytical skills. Outside the legal realm, Humberto is an active member of the Wellington Rotary Club and is deeply involved with the Hispanic community, reflecting his commitment to community service and cultural engagement.
Albany Rojas Carrero, Communications and Social Media Coordinator While pursuing her law degree at Nova Southeastern University, Albany served as a domestic violence paralegal, assisting victims in obtaining injunctions for protection. With eight years of legal practice in Venezuela, she undertook the challenge of restarting her legal career in the U.S., balancing work, motherhood, and marriage. Albany's deep connection to the immigrant community stems from her personal experience, making her a passionate advocate. After being a staff attorney at Legal Aid, Albany recently started her own solo immigration practice to continue to help the Hispanic community. In addition, she mentors foreign attorneys to help them to get accepted into law school and eventually pass the bar exam. In her free time, she enjoys just being at home with her husband, daughter and her dog.
Juan Diaz - Immediate Past President
Juan has devoted his legal career to the litigation of personal injury, premises liability, wrongful death, negligent security and products liability claims, representing his clients in both state and federal courts from inception of the case through trial. As a native Spanish speaker, he is especially well equipped to understand and serve the needs of the Latino community. Before joining Searcy, Denney, Scarola, Barnhart, & Shipley, P.A. Mr. Diaz Avila worked with the largest insurance defense law firm in Florida, where he defended personal injury lawsuits on behalf of some of the most established insurance companies. He now applies this knowledge of the inner workings of the insurance industry to obtaining compensation for injuries caused by the negligence of others. Mr. Diaz Avila was born in Bogota, Colombia, and moved to Florida at age 20. He earned his undergraduate degree cum laude from Florida International University, majoring in international relations. He went on to earn his Juris Doctor from Florida International University College of Law, where he excelled in legal writing and advocacy classes. When he was a third-year law student, his legal memoranda were selected by the school faculty as models for first- and second-year law students. Mr. Diaz Avila is admitted to practice in the State of Florida and the United States District Courts for the Middle and Southern Districts of Florida. He is a member of the Palm Beach County Hispanic Bar Association, the Florida Justice Association, the Palm Beach County Bar Association, and the American Bar Association.
Francisco Cuello, Member-at-large
Litigation Paralegal with over 14 years of experience in personal injury claims in the State of Florida. Born in the Dominican Republic where he studied and received a law degree and graduated from the University of Miami with a Master’s degree focused on U.S. and Transnational Law. He has dedicated his life to social work and is a passionate advocate for the Latino community.
Karen Velez, Member-at-Large
Karen Velez is the founder of The Velez Law Firm, P.A., located in Boca Raton, which focuses on Family Law and Criminal Law. Prior to starting the firm, she began her 19-year legal career in public service as an Assistant Public Defender. She has extensive courtroom experience and has litigated jury trials and bench trials.
As a resident of Palm Beach County for over 25 years she is committed to serving in the community and has served on numerous local boards. Attorney Velez served on the Board of Directors of The Craig S. Barnard Inn of Court, the Palm Beach County Bar Association Law Related Education Committee, where she co-chaired the Florida Supreme Court Mock Trial competition. Karen also served on the Board of The Women’s Foundation of Florida, where co-chaired the Women On The Run program with former West Palm Beach Mayor Jeri Muoio. Attorney Velez was a finalist for the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Palm Beach County, “Esperanza” Award. Esperanza means hope in Spanish. The Esperanza Awards recognize and honor Hispanic business women with exceptional achievement in business and in the public or private sectors in Palm Beach County.
Board Advisors:
Victoria Mesa-Estrada is a trial attorney at Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, who has litigated cases throughout the state of Florida and other states. She pursues personal injury, sexual abuse, wrongful death, and medical malpractice claims on behalf of injured victims. Prior to joining the firm, she spent over a decade working as a public interest attorney representing low wage agricultural and immigrant workers, filing several successful class actions on behalf of underpaid and exploited low wage workers and obtaining a $17.4 million verdict for sexual harassment, recorded as the largest in Florida history against an agricultural employer.
Ms. Mesa-Estrada has also handled many notable cases throughout her legal career and was recently one of the three Searcy law attorneys that led a team of six law firms from around the country in obtaining a $38.3 Million jury verdict in federal Court against a major U.S. Corporation. She is a zealous advocate for gender equality and immigrant justice and currently serves as both the President of the Palm Beach Chapter of the Florida Association For Women Lawyers.
A native Colombian, Mrs. Mesa-Estrada moved to Florida as a teenager with her parents, allowing her to earn her bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relations from Florida International University. In 2008, she earned her law degree from St. Thomas University School of Law, where she also earned a Master of Laws in Intercultural Human Rights, cum laude. She is admitted to practice in all Florida state courts, as well as in the United States District Courts for the Southern, Middle and Northern Florida, and the Federal 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. She is a member of The Florida Bar and a Palm Beach County Bar Association Board Director.
Adriana Gonzalez is a shareholder in Gonzalez & Cartwright, P.A., an AV-rated firm in Lake Worth, Florida. The firm was formed in 2010. Today, Gonzalez & Cartwright, P.A. is among the premier Spanish-speaking law firms in Palm Beach County and has recovered more than $50 million for her clients. Adriana Gonzalez has litigated cases on behalf of injured clients in State and Federal Courts throughout Florida. Her practice includes personal injury, wrongful death, and catastrophic injury cases arising from automobile accidents, trucking accidents, motorcycle accidents, product defects, and slip and falls. In addition to working on behalf of accident victims, Adriana devotes a substantial amount of time to community service. She is a past President of the Palm Beach County Hispanic Bar Association and the first female president Palm Beach County Justice Association. She currently serves on the Board of the Florida Justice Association and the 15th Judicial Circuit Pro Bono Committee. She is also active in politics: she served as a Delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 2016 and 2024 and has overseen voter protection and expansion efforts in Palm Beach County in the last three elections. Adriana was born in Armenia, Colombia, and she moved to Florida with her parents and sister when she was nine years old. She graduated from Florida Atlantic University and later received her law degree from Florida Coastal School of Law. She is the mother of two boys and is a huge fan of the Miami Dolphins, the Washington Nationals with whom she worked with while in law school, the Miami Heat, the Florida Panthers, as well as the Colombian National Soccer Team.
Members-at-Large:
Ethel Velasquez Garcia
Jerry Leakey
Aldo Rodriguez is the owner of ARC Law, PLLC, a virtual law firm based in West Palm Beach, FL, specializing in Estate Planning, Probate & Trust Administration. Aldo received his Juris Doctor in 2014 from the University of North Carolina School of Law and a dual Bachelor of Arts in History and Italian in 2011 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a member of the Palm Beach County Hispanic Bar Association and the Real Property Probate and Trust Law Section of The Florida Bar.
Aldo has extensive experience with Estate Planning and Probate & Trust Administration, including drafting of Wills & Trusts and advising how to avoid probate and asset preservation strategies. After practicing several years with a South Florida law firm, Aldo founded ARC Law, PLLC in 2020 to provide high-quality estate planning and probate services more directly to clients by leveraging virtual and digital services.
Christopher A. Sajdera, concentrates his diverse practice on general commercial, association, and real estate litigation; and on condominium and homeowner association representation, including corporate advisement, covenant analysis and opinions, collections, and other general corporate association issues. Christopher also represents owners against associations. As a commercial litigator, Christopher has experience defending clients and prosecuting cases involving contract disputes, real estate disputes, business disputes and torts, collections, construction defects and disputes, commercial real estate fraud, covenants, and easements issues, commercial and residential landlord-tenant matters, municipality and governmental disputes, and insurance disputes, among others. Christopher is Florida Bar Board Certified Specialist, Condominium and Planned Development Law. As part of his association litigation practice, Christopher represents condominium and homeowners associations in construction defect litigation, collections, land use litigation, covenant enforcement, breach of contract disputes, recalls, and insurance claim litigation. Christopher also handles arbitrations and fair housing matters.
Cecilia Quinn is licensed to practice law in California and Florida, with over a decade of experience litigating cases in state and federal courts. She began her legal career as a research attorney for the Los Angeles Superior Court Criminal Law division followed by entering into private practice where Ms. Quinn has represented clients in a variety of legal matters; such as successfully representing clients in complex litigation by serving as class action counsel in cases that involved over 1600 member plaintiffs in the field of consumer rights, unfair trade practices and privacy laws. She also routinely advises internationally based business owners and entrepreneurs who seek to open and invest in the United States by representing them and their businesses before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services within the Department of Homeland Security. Ms. Quinn has had the privilege of working with international Latin American musical artists and groups in negotiating and drafting licensing agreements for musical works including the registration and defense process before the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Active in her community, Ms. Quinn has also served as a law instructor teaching courses in the areas of constitutional law, criminal law and procedure and general legal studies. Ms. Quinn is bilingual, fluent in Spanish and English and her law practice is located in Boca Raton, Florida. In addition to being part of the board for the Palm Beach County Hispanic Bar Association, she is an active member of the South Palm Beach County Bar Association, South Palm Beach County Florida Association for Women Lawyers, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association.