Bárbara M. Santisteban, Her Justice
Bárbara M. Santisteban
Volunteer Attorney with Her Justice
Recipient of the 2017 Champion for Justice Award
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This year, Her Justice is honoring Bárbara M. Santisteban, a corporate associate at Jones Day, with the 2017 Champion for Justice Award at our annual Red Party. In her pro bono work, Bárbara focuses primarily on immigration matters and is known for her remarkable ability to navigate the difficulties of immigration bureaucracy, often solving stuck or complicated cases. We’re highlighting Bárbara’s impressive and steadfast commitment throughout her past five years volunteering with Her Justice. |
Bárbara first began volunteering with Her Justice as part of our Summer Associate program, in which summer associates from our Corporate Partner firms have the opportunity to represent a client, supervised in-house and mentored by a Her Justice attorney. She describes the most rewarding aspect of her work with Her Justice as the ability to “help people who often otherwise feel powerless (socially, legally, economically, and sometimes emotionally) take control of their own lives and move forward from their past with stability, independence, and without fear.” |
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Immigration matters have been especially important for Bárbara, whose personal experiences with the immigration process have made her acutely aware of how difficult this can be for clients. In her experiences with Her Justice, she has seen how “valuable and impactful effective representation can be.” |
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A tireless advocate for her clients, Bárbara still continues to learn and grow in her position. To those following in her footsteps, she offers this advice, “Dive deep into the cases you take on, and remember that in many instances you may be one of only a few people that this person may be counting on or trust for her own future and that of her family. Although the immigration process is slow, keep track of the timelines and follow up often to make sure nothing is delayed. Remember that human lives are at stake and that, were the roles reversed, you would want your attorney to do the best possible job for you.” |
“Dive deep into the cases you take on, and remember that in many instances you may be one of only a few people that this person may be counting on or trust for her own future and that of her family." |
Her Justice is honored to present Bárbara with the 2017 Champion for Justice Award, and excited to see what great things she will accomplish next! |
Her Justice is a nonprofit organization that takes a ‘pro bono first’ approach to the provision of legal services to women living in poverty in all five boroughs of New York City. The staff of 18 lawyers and legal assistants ensures that more than 3,000 women every year receive free legal assistance in family, divorce and immigration matters. |
Interested in volunteering? Check out our "Volunteer Tools" page to learn about the range of resources we have at Pro Bono Net to help mobilize and engage pro bono volunteers, or start searching for opportunities right now by using our national Pro Bono Opportunities Guide!