Estate and Succession Planning
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Felipe Guerrero Featured in El Sentinel
Dean Mead attorney, Felipe Guerrero, was featured in the February 17, 2014 edition of El Sentinel. A link to the article is here: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/elsentinel/mi-gente-15-20140217,0,491821.story
Article is translated here in English:
He has his own story and a genuine concern for the rights of minorities which has led to Felipe Guerrero, a young Colombian lawyer, commercial litigator with the Dean Mead law firm in Orlando, who devotes much of his time to serving the Hispanic community in Central Florida.
Guerrero, 34, was president in 2011 and is an active member of the Hispanic Bar Association of Central Florida ( HBACF ), an organization of judges, magistrates , lawyers, paralegals, law students and others dedicated to advocating for rights of Hispanics in the region and to help them understand and learn about them, and assure fair representation in the U.S. judicial system.
“In my field I represent mostly businesses, so the bar [ HBACF ] is a vehicle to get closer to the Hispanic community and try to find a way to help them,” Guerrero said. “Many minorities, especially those who do not speak English, do not know that they have legal rights and the least I can do as a Hispanic lawyer, is to educate them about this,” he added.
Born in Bogotá , Guerrero came with his parents to America when he was 10, and today considers himself Colombian -American , said he remembers how hard it was for him and his family to adapt during the early years.
“We, like almost all immigrants, came to this Country not knowing a word of English, not knowing where we were, and it was very difficult to communicate, it really was not easy,” Guerrero recalled, noting that it was a Filipino teacher who helped him and his sister learn English.
Guerrero spent his early years in the cities of Bradenton and Sarasota, where he finished high school. Soon he was selected to go to the University of Central Florida, where he earned a degree in Political Science in 2001, so that he could later steer his career toward the law and obtain a law degree from the University of Florida in Gainesville in late 2005 .
“My parents always emphasized our education, they sacrificed in coming to a country where they thought we would have more opportunities and I think they were right,” explains Guerrero.
Months before graduating law school, he was selected by Dean Mead, P.A. for an internship at the renowned firm, and within months, the firm decided to keep him as one of their most valuable commercial litigator, where he aspires to become a partner.
“Felipe is a tremendous lawyer, and he has an excellent way of servicing our clients and always ensures that in all cases the client’s needs come first. He is diligent. He is assertive when needed and has been during the years he has been with the firm. We are really lucky to have him here,” affirmed David P. Hathaway, head of the litigation department of Dean Mead, P. A.
As a litigator, Guerrero has experience in a variety of business matters including contracts and business disputes, trade embargoes, commercial disputes between landlords and tenants and creditors rights, among others.
In his quest to better serve the Hispanic community of Central Florida, last June he was selected to be one of the first students of the Florida Bar Leadership Academy, a competitive program to which only 59 lawyers throughout the state of Florida make up the class, which aims to provide them with the skills and resources necessary to become leaders not only in their professional practices, but also within the communities they serve .
Selected from among over 100 attorneys across the State, Guerrero will have the opportunity to meet, interact, and build relationships with executives of bars across the state, while also undertaking projects that will help manifest his leadership.
“My participation in the Florida Bar Leadership Academy represents another step in my journey of service that I have decided to forge as a lawyer. My goal is to provide a legal voice for underprivileged Hispanic communities as a way of giving back what I have received in this country,” said Guerrero.
The lawyer is committed to remain a simple, family oriented person, who enjoys spending his free time with his wife, parents, sister and nephews, and maintain the customs of the land of his birth and facing the challenges and opportunities of this, his second home.
