Maria del Rocio Gonzalez Alcantara L., Mexico City, Mexico Maria (“Rocio”) joins Columbia Law School from Mijares, Angoitia, Cortés y Fuentes, S.C. in Mexico City where she is a senior associate in constitutional and administrative practice. She earned her law degree from Escuela Libre de Derecho in 2001 and, in 2002, was selected to be the youngest-ever lead staff attorney in the Supreme Court of Administrative Justice for Mexico City, a position she held for three years. In addition, Rocio has taught law at both the undergraduate and graduate levels at Universidad Iberoamericana. After earning her LL.M. at Columbia, Rocio plans to return to her firm and to teach administrative and constitutional law at the university. She will also become a member in the first mediation center at Universidad Iberoamericana, a pro bono project that will provide low-income people with legal assistance to obtain fair solutions to their everyday problems.
Yuliya Guseva, Orenburg, Russia Originally hailing from Russia, Yuliya comes to Columbia from Central European University in Budapest where she is finishing an S.J.D. degree in International Business Law. The focus of her S.J.D. is comparative studies of the US and Russian law and international investments. Yuliya hopes that her S.J.D. research will help developing securitization and finance law in Russia in absorbing the best international practices. She obtained an LL.B. degree with honors from Orenburg State University. While in Russia, she infused her career with public service, including establishing a program for providing free legal help for small businesses and the poor under the auspices of Orenburg State University and working in “The Center for Social Projects” in the Regional Administration of the President of Russia. Later, Yuliya continued her graduate studies at Duquesne University in the US, where she also performed public service and a one-year internship at the Office of Attorney General and District Attorney’s Office in Pittsburgh. After finishing the Pro Bono Program, Yuliya plans to devote several years to working in a law firm working with East and Central European companies. She intends to return to academia in the future and hopes to contribute to developing business and finance law in Russia and Central Europe.
Hugo López-Coll, Mexico City, Mexico Hugo comes to Columbia from Cervantes, Aguilar-Alvarez y Sainz, S.C. in Mexico City and brings with him a strong commitment to pro bono and entrepreneurship. At his firm, Hugo is responsible for a legal team that approaches legal matters with creative and innovative solutions. He has focused a substantial part of his pro bono service on assisting nonprofit organizations in Mexico that serve the poor and disadvantaged by providing counsel in corporate and regulatory matters. Likewise, Hugo dedicates a substantial portion of his spare time to acting as legal counsel for a nonprofit organization in Mexico City whose goal is to link immigrants' nonprofit organizations in an effort to generate tangible benefits to immigrants in the social, economic and cultural spheres. Hugo received his law degree from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México. Upon completing the LL.M. Pro Bono Fellowship, Hugo plans to return to Mexico as a senior associate at Cervantes, Aguilar-Alvarez y Sainz, S.C. He is also interested in teaching law part-time, especially at the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México, his alma mater.
María Isabel Rodríguez Vargas, Madrid, Spain María Isabel (“Maribel”) comes to Columbia Law School from Cuatrecasas Abogados SRL in Madrid, Spain where she specializes in European and Competition Law. At Cuatrecasas, Maribel has coordinated due diligence projects and other work in connection with mergers and antitrust complaints before Spanish and European authorities. She also litigates on competition practice and European law practice before the European Courts. During the Summer of 2006, Maribel volunteered by assisting indigents, children and the elderly in Calcutta, India. Maribel received her law degree and a certificate in financial accountancy from the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid. After completing the LL.M. program at Columbia, Maribel plans to combine private practice and work on helping to establish a pro bono department at Cuatrecasas She also plans to do research and lecture at a university.
Jessica Villaverde Gálvez, Mexico City, Mexico Jessica joins Columbia from Creel, García-Cuéllar y Müggenburg, S.C. in Mexico City where she practices environmental law. As part of the environmental group at Creel, Jessica performed environmental law compliance audits and drafted legal opinions on complex issues relating to Mexican environmental laws and regulations. In addition, she has advised nongovernmental organizations and conservancy funds in projects for the conservation and protection of natural resources. In addition to pro bono work in environmental law, Jessica has volunteered with EUDES, a non-profit organization concerned with helping HIV patients, where she provided legal counseling to patients. Jessica received her law degree from the Universidad Iberoamericana and her diploma in Environmental Law from the Instituto de Investigaciones Juridicas, UNAM. Upon completion of the LL.M. program at Columbia, Jessica plans on returning to Mexico and her firm to work for conservation and sustainable development in the country.
