Holland & Knight Partner Frances Guasch De La Guardia has received the Regional President of the Year Award from the Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA). The award recognizes regional presidents for their remarkable leadership, innovative vision and steadfast commitment to advancing the Hispanic legal profession and community. Ms. Guasch De La Guardia will be honored at the 2024 HNBA and "Vision in Action" (VIA) Fund Annual Convention on September 5.
HNBA is an incorporated, not-for-profit, national membership association that represents the interests of more than 78,000 Hispanic attorneys, more than 18,000 law students and thousands of other legal professionals, including judges, law professors and legal assistants in the U.S. and its territories.
Based in Miami, Ms. Guasch De La Guardia is a member of Holland & Knight's South Florida Litigation Practice Group. She practices in the areas of commercial, insurance and land use litigation and provides appellate and trial support in both state and federal courts. She has handled hundreds of appeals in Florida's district courts of appeal, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the Miami-Dade and Broward Circuit Court of Appeals Division.
Ms. Guasch De La Guardia has served as president of HNBA Region VIII for the past two years and is a former president of the Cuban American Bar Association. During her time as HNBA Region VIII president, Ms. Guasch De La Guardia has led numerous membership region events with the purpose of mentoring law students and fundraising for law student scholarships. Region VIII has raised more than $30,000 in scholarship funds, in partnership with HNBA's local and national corporate counsel, for six law students, who were awarded $5,000 each. She also participated in the HNBA Region VIII Speed Mentoring Event where more than 60 law students were matched with legal professionals. Additionally, Ms. Guasch De La Guardia has led and participated in the "Los Nuestro En La Ley" lunch series featuring distinguished corporate counsel and judiciary members.
Ms. Guasch De La Guardia also serves on the St. Thomas University School of Law (STU Law) Advisory Board. Most recently, she participated as a panelist on the "Mentoring Across Differences" panel hosted by the Florida Hispanic Bar Association and HNBA during The Florida Bar Winter Meeting. Ms. Guasch De La Guardia was also part of the STU Law and The Florida Bar Diversity & Inclusion Committee "Pathways to the Law" panel, where panelists discussed shared experiences and stories that highlighted the importance of diversity and representation in the legal field.
"I'm honored to serve HNBA, and to be recognized as this year's regional president is a testament to my commitment to driving positive change and opportunities for the Hispanic legal profession and community," said Ms. Guasch De La Guardia.
"Frances is highly deserving of the Regional President of the Year Award. She is a strong leader, lawyer and a person who is always willing to help others," said Maria Dantes Sanchez, General Counsel of HNBA VIA Fund and VP & Regional General Attorney at Liberty Mutual Insurance. "Frances truly embodies the values of the HNBA in everything she does."
"I've seen firsthand the amount of commitment and dedication Frances pours into this great organization," said Irene Oria, 42nd president of the HNBA and founding partner of Pierson Ferdinand LLP. "I've had the pleasure of working alongside Frances for many years, and I'm incredibly proud of her continued efforts to create new opportunities for the Hispanic community in the U.S., including in our home state of Florida."
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