Local Immigration Attorney Honored as Young Lawyer of the Year

By Caroline Stauffer

Hugo Valverde, of the Virginia Beach firm Valverde & Rowell PC, received the 2008 R. Edwin Burnette Jr. Young Lawyer of the Year Award at the Virginia State Bar Annual Meeting.

Valverde said assisting his clients, most of whom are Hispanic, is the most rewarding aspect of his work. “Helping my clients out, especially when they are in a place where they don’t understand the language or the situation they are in, is the most satisfying part of my job,” he said.

The experience of his parents, who emigrated from Peru after obtaining political asylum in the United States, affected Valverde’s career decision and continues to influence his practice. “Growing up in an immigrant household, you have an inside look at what it’s like to be an immigrant in America,” he said. “My father taught me to stick up for what you believe in, and for what’s right, even if it gets you in trouble. I continue to apply that principle in my law practice.”

Valverde shared the 2008 award from the Virginia State Bar Young Lawyer’s Conference (YLC) with Kenneth L. Alger II of Woodstock. The State Bar held its annual meeting on June 20 in Virginia Beach, where the YLC recognized the two lawyers for their dedication to the conference, the legal profession and their communities.

Valverde continues to serve the Hampton Roads Hispanic community and to offer his immigration expertise to the YLC. On July 27, he will join representatives from the Mexican Embassy and the local Hispanic community in a discussion of immigration policy at St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church. He will also participate in the Hispanic Leadership Summit at Virginia Wesleyan College on Sept. 27.

“Every opportunity that is presented to me to speak I jump on, because I believe it is important to get the word out to the Hispanic community in order to protect their rights,” Valverde said.

With the YLC, he plans to develop a brochure to prevent the exploitation of Hispanics in the immigration process. A common case of fraud that new Hispanic immigrants fall victim to involves other Hispanics who pose as lawyers but lack any real credentials. Valverde also works with the Washington D.C.-based Capital Area Immigrant Rights Coalition to provide rights orientations for detainees held in local jails.

He encourages young people considering a law career to find out as much as possible about what a lawyer actually does by speaking to practicing attorneys and observing them in action. “I spent time with lawyers just to make sure being an attorney was the best use of my talents,” he said. Valverde graduated from the Regent University School of Law and holds a master’s degree from Duke University and a bachelor of science degree from the College of William and Mary.

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