JAVIER A. LEY-SOTO, ESQ.
PRESIDENT
Javier Ley-Soto currently serves as the General Counsel for Miami Dade College overseeing all legal matters for the College and its 8 campuses. Immediately preceeding, this position, he served as the Chief Legal Counsel for the Florida Department of Children and Families managing legal matters for Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties.
Javier started his legal career at a boutique law firm prior to joining the Department handling commercial litigation matters. Mr. Ley-Soto also clerked at the Third District Court of Appeal for the Honorable David M. Gersten. Mr. Ley-Soto has been a member of CABA since graduating from St. Thomas University School of Law where he was the Student Bar Association President, Student Senator and founding member of the St. Thomas More Catholic Law Society.
He was awarded 2010 Assistant General Counsel of the Year award by the Florida Government Bar Association, a Finalist for the Miami Chamber of Commerce 2011 and 2014 HYPE Awards Go-Getter Award and recognized for Outstanding Humanitarian Support during Operation Repatriation following the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
KAREN CESPEDES, ESQ.
VICE PRESIDENT
Karen Cespedes is a complex litigation consultant at Esquire Deposition Solutions, LLC, a national provider of deposition management solutions. As a proven sales professional and legal strategist, Karen works with corporations, law firms, attorneys and their teams to effectively manage the deposition process.
ALEX PEREZ
TREASURER
A. DAX BELLO, ESQ.
DIRECTOR
Dax Bello is a shareholder at Stewart Tilghman Fox Bianchi & Cain. His practice is devoted to representing plaintiffs in the civil prosecution of wrongful death, catastrophic injury, and other complex matters. He currently serves as board president for CABA Pro Bono Legal Services.
GISELLE GUTIERREZ, ESQ.
DIRECTOR
Giselle Gutierrez is a Shareholder in the Labor & Employment and Litigation Departments. Her labor and employment experience includes representing clients before administrative agencies (such as the EEOC and the NLRB) and federal and state courts in cases involving employment discrimination, retaliation, unpaid wages, defamation and claims under the FMLA, ADA, ADEA, Title VII, and more. Giselle also handles non-compete and employment contract litigation, and counsels clients on data security issues.
IDALBERTO DE ARMAS
DIRECTOR
JOSE FELIX-DIAZ, ESQ.
DIRECTOR
Jose Felix Diaz is a government law attorney. His practice areas include the representation of individuals, non-profits, major corporations, and various other entities before county and municipal boards throughout the State of Florida and beyond in complex matters involving public contract procurement, public private partnership deals and solicitations, litigation, zoning, land use, code compliance and enforcement, energy project development and comprehensive planning.
MARIA D. GARCIA, ESQ.
DIRECTOR
Maria D. Garcia is a Partner and Co–Chair of the Healthcare Practice at Kozyak Tropin & Throckmorton, and focuses her practice on health care law and commercial litigation. She received her B.A., magna cum laude, from Florida International University, where she majored in Political Science. She earned her Juris Doctor from Florida International University College of Law.
DANIEL R. MARTINEZ
DIRECTOR
Daniel Martinez has over 25 years of banking experience. Prior to joining Professional Bank, he worked for financial institutions such as Citibank, Union Planters Bank-Private Banking Division and Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust Co. where he serviced and formulated relationships with high net worth individuals and families as well as professionals within the legal, accounting and medical communities.
JORDI MARTINEZ-CID, ESQ.
DIRECTOR
Jordi Martínez-Cid has helped banks and other lending institutions navigate the regulatory landscape with an emphasis on avoiding consumer harm, and represented multinationals in complex proceedings both domestically and abroad. He has worked in-house with NBCUniversal and Telemundo, overseeing a broad range of both domestic and international litigation matters for those entities and their affiliates. He also regularly represents both corporate and individual clients in criminal, fraud-related cases, extradition cases and cases seeking post-conviction relief.
SERGIO L. MENDEZ, ESQ.
DIRECTOR
Sergio L. Mendez was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1985 and has more than 30 years of experience. He practiced with his late father for 15 years. Though his practice is limited to Guardianship, Probate and Real Property Law, he has handled hundreds of cases across the spectrum of civil litigation.
LESLEY MENDOZA, ESQ.
CABA PRO BONO EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Lesley Mendoza joined CABA Pro Bono Legal Services in February 2013 as Executive Director and is responsible for supervising attorneys and all legal services provided by the organization. In addition, she conducts outreach efforts to educate the community on the services provided as well as recruitment and fundraising.
MIRIAM SOLER RAMOS, ESQ.
DIRECTOR
Miriam Soler Ramos was appointed Coral Gables City Attorney in 2017. Ramos is the chief legal officer and general counsel for the city, serving as counsel to the City Commission, City Officials, and City Departments, providing legal opinions and interpretations on behalf of the city, and supervising the City Attorney’s Office and outside counsel. She is Board Certified by the Florida Bar in City, County, and Local Government Law.