French-Speaking Attorneys

Amy Morilla

Stratford, CT

Attorney Morilla is a licensed practitioner in Connecticut and New Jersey, admitted to their respective federal courts, and an esteemed member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Holding a Juris Doctorate from Rutgers Law School in Newark, she actively contributed to the Minority Student and Hispanic Student Associations and engaged in Pro Bono Clinic work. With a Bachelor's Degree in Latin American Studies and Spanish Literature from New York University, Attorney Morilla's linguistic prowess extends to fluency in Spanish, proficiency in French and Portuguese. As a first-generation Cuban American, English is her second language, akin to many of her clients. Her family's history as Cuban exiles fuels her commitment to aiding immigrant families in pursuit of the American Dream. Having personally navigated the challenges of the legalization process, Attorney Morilla is dedicated to helping families stay united. Her unique background fosters a compassionate understanding of the immigrant experience, creating a client relationship that demystifies the legalization process. She firmly believes in breaking down legal complexities for every client, regardless of their level of education, ensuring that nothing feels too daunting to comprehend.

David M. Bohonnon

New Haven, CT

David M. Bohonnon is a Of Counsel in the New Haven based Bohonnon Law Firm, LLC., which practices extensively in Marine and Aviation Law as well as Tax matters. Admitted to bar 1982, Connecticut, Federal Court District of Connecticut. Education: Connecticut College, 1978; BA; Quinnipiac Law School, 1982, JD, Yale School of Organization and Management, 1983, 1984. The marine transaction part of his business focuses on negotiation of yacht construction and vessel purchase agreements, construction financing of mega-yachts for lenders and borrowers in transactions in the United States, Canada, England, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, France, Taiwan, Turkey, New Zealand, Argentina and permanent financing and registration of vessels in the United States, The Cayman Islands, Bermuda, Antigua, Marshall Islands, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Bahamas, Isle of Man and the British Virgin Islands. David has extensive experience in Sales and Use tax and Income tax appeals both at the Administrative and trial Court levels. Much of the sales and use tax law in the marine and aviation sectors within Connecticut has been shaped by decisions and statutes with his participation. He has authored several US Patent applications in the Recreational Marine venue and lectures nationally on topics related to recreational marine and tax matters. Member: American Bar Association; Connecticut Bar Association, Tax Section Executive Committee; Maritime Law Association (Proctor), (Chairman Subcommittee on Yacht Financing (2007-2019); (American Bar Association “ABA” Commercial Law Yacht Financing Committee, Chairman (2011-2019), Member: Recreational Boating and Marine Lending Network, Yacht Brokers Association of America (YBAA), International Yacht Brokers Association (IYBA), Affiliate Member.

George D. Silva

Brooklyn, NY

A graduate of New York Law School (J.D. 1996) and Concordia University in Montreal (B.A. with honor in Political Science 1993), George Silva joined Bisogno & Meyerson in 1996. He handles primary personal injury cases and works closely with the firm’s partners on a variety of matters. He, his wife and their child live on Staten Island. He is fluent in French and Portuguese.

Elana S. Baron is a Shareholder at Bragdon, Baron & Kossayda, P.C. She earned her J.D. from Vermont Law School and B.A. from McGill University. She is licensed in New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and the U.S. District Courts for New Hampshire and Vermont. She is fluent in English and French and holds a Certified Estate Planner (CEP®) professional certification. Her practice areas include Real Estate, Civil Litigation, Probate and Elder Law, Landlord-Tenant law, Collections and Foreclosures, and Corporate Law.

Leonard grew up in a suburb of Chicago as the oldest of seven children and as a result developed his advisory and communication skills at an early age. He attended Fenwick High School in Oak Park, Illinois and then University of Notre Dame in South Bend Indiana. Before attending Lewis and Clark Law School in Portland, he traveled abroad for 6 months, attempting to be understood in Spanish, German, French, and Greek with limited success. He is a trial lawyer with experience in criminal defense, family law, probate, and personal injury litigation. He was a pro-term Circuit Court judge appointed by the governor. For 45 years, he traveled statewide in this capacity and also presided over the Clackamas County night court for almost 45 years. Len and his wife have three daughters attending elementary and high school in Lake Oswego. The Kovac girls are all musicians, athletes, and scholars, keeping their parents busy with their obligations to orchestras, pep bands, soccer teams, and school and dance teams.

Maria Raviela

Manassas, VA

Maria Raviela joined The Parrish Car Accident & Personal Injury Law Firm in November 2023 as a Paralegal. She has over eight years of experience in bankruptcy law, handling Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 cases. Maria holds a degree in Psychology and is proficient in technology. She enjoys reading, live music, proofreading, and translating between English and Spanish, and also speaks some French. Maria is dedicated to supporting clients and making a positive impact in personal injury law.

Nina C. Pouget

San Francisco, CA

Nina is an associate at Phillips, Erlewine, Given & Carlin. She graduated magna cum laude from the University of Paris X (Nanterre), where she obtained a master’s degree in business law. Prior to joining the firm, Nina pursued a LL.M. degree at the University of California Berkeley School of Law where she received a certificate of specialization in Law and Technology. Her practice focuses on entertainment, intellectual property, copyright, trademark, transactional and commercial law. Nina is licensed to practice law in California and France. Nina is a true polyglot. In addition to her native French, Nina speaks fluent Spanish and English. Prior to relocating to the US, Nina was choir member in the Paris Opera.

Sergio R. Cardenas

El Segundo, CA

Sergio believes he provided an honorable service securing impressive outcomes for injury victims. Sergio's genuine caring nature and his unwavering commitment to "making things right" in his clients' lives is why many of his clients love working with him. Mr. Cardenas began his career as an immigration paralegal while attending UCLA Extension. He secured his attorney license with the California State Bar and began his attorney career fighting for injury, lemon law, and immigration violation victims. He is a native speaker of Spanish and fluent in French and English. He has secured impressive outcomes for numerous injury and lemon law victims.

MAX ALVAREZ

Las Vegas, NV

Max Alvarez is an associate attorney at Mills & Anderson in Las Vegas, Nevada. A first-generation Hispanic-American and fluent Spanish speaker, he focuses on family law, personal injury, immigration, and wills and trusts. He earned his Juris Doctor from Boyd School of Law in 2020 and was hired as an associate in 2023, after working as a law clerk with the firm since 2019. He prides himself on guiding Spanish-speaking litigants through the legal process in their own language.

LEVON VARDANYAN

Las Vegas, NV

Levon joined Nevada Legal Group in March of 2020. He has since been able to assist the firm in expanding their area of practice into immigration law while assisting with personal injury, property damage, business, small claims and criminal matters. Levon began his journey in the field of law when he immigrated to the United States in 2007 to further his education. He obtained his BA in Political Science from St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY where he was able to attend with a full International Student scholarship. He then moved on to attend law school at the University of Dayton School of Law where he was able to obtain his Juris Doctorate in a two-year accelerated program again being recipient of multiple merit scholarships. Upon receipt of his JD, he decided to escape the cold and move to Los Angeles, CA where he worked in the foreclosure defense litigation area of law for three years. Regardless of his involvement in real estate and personal injury law, Levon never forgot his passion for immigration law. His interest in immigration law stems from being a “double immigrant” himself as he was born in Armenia and lived in Mexico since the age of five until moving to the United States. Even before attending law school, he has helped many people obtain their permanent residency, asylum and citizenship allowing them to legally live and work in this country. In early 2020, Levon and his wife Artemis decided to relocate to Las Vegas to further pursue their careers. They have since had a Vegas born son, Harutyun, and enjoy working and living in this great community. In his spare time, Levon enjoys traveling, spending time with his family and friends and being outdoors as much as possible.

Rachel Russell

Indianapolis, IN

Rachel Russell is an Indiana defense attorney focusing on professional license advocacy, criminal record expungement, and firearm rights restoration. She previously served as Deputy General Counsel and Ethics Officer for the Indiana Department of Child Services, bringing extensive experience in administrative law and ethics compliance.

Hovsep Hovsepyan

Glendale, CA

Hovsep Hovsepyan is a skilled litigation attorney at KAASS Law, specializing in complex litigation and arbitration. He holds an LLM from UC Berkeley School of Law, a Ph.D. from the Public Administration Academy of the Republic of Armenia, and LLM and LLB degrees from Yerevan State University. He is licensed in California and the Republic of Armenia and is fluent in multiple languages.

Bonnie-Jean Nunheimer

Orleans, MA

Bonnie fell in love with the Cape while visiting family friends the summer after graduating from Walnut Hill School in Natick, Massachusetts. She attended Mount Mary College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and completed a dual major in History and French. To achieve fluency, Bonnie also lived in France and undertook an intense program at the University of Paris, the Sorbonne. She continues to be proficient in French. In an intentional move back to New England, Bonnie attended the evening program at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island, while continuing to work full time as a litigation paralegal in Providence. While working with the Social Security Law Group assisting people afflicted with severe medical and psychiatric impairments, a friend called to tell her about an opening at La Tanzi, Spaulding & Landreth. In 2003, Bonnie accepted a position with the firm and moved to the Cape, settling in Brewster with her husband, Mark, who was raised in Bass River. Bonnie became a partner in the Real Estate Department in 2007. Bonnie has extensive experience representing lenders, buyers and sellers in the diverse towns from Brewster to Provincetown. She specializes in all aspects of condominium law, including representation of condominium associations, and completing condominium conversions. Actively involved professionally, Bonnie serves on the Executive Committee of the Barnstable County Bar and on the Conveyancing Committee of the Real Estate Bar Association of Massachusetts. In the community, she is the attorney coach for the Nauset Regional High School Mock Trial Team and the Community Outreach Officer and Director of Brewster Regional Little League.

SCOTT R. HALL

Chicago, IL

Scott R. Hall joined the firm in 2022, concentrating his practice in insurance defense, coverage litigation, and medical malpractice defense. He has experience in probate, collections, guardianships, estate planning, insurance subrogation, family law, municipal law, creditor’s rights in bankruptcy, workers’ compensation, and employment law. He served as Managing Editor of the Law Review at Northern Illinois College of Law.

Manal Tarhini

Jacksonville, FL

Manal Tarhini is a partner in the Miami office of Shuster Saben Estevez, focusing on personal injury protection (PIP) recovery and bodily injury claims. She is a frequent lecturer to medical professionals on PIP issues and is accredited to provide continuing education courses. She obtained dual undergraduate degrees and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Miami in 2012.

Gabe Vigh

Santa Ana, CA

Mr. Vigh is a relentless advocate for those who have suffered or been wronged. He is a member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, an honor reserved for fewer than 1% of attorneys throughout the country. He has also been selected to the Super Lawyers Rising Stars and the Best Lawyers “Ones to Watch” lists from 2023, 2024 and 2025. To date, Mr. Vigh has recovered over $75 million dollars for his clients. Mr. Vigh’s primary focus is representing clients in catastrophic personal injury matters involving motor vehicle accidents, pedestrian accidents, bicycle accidents, slip and falls, wrongful death matters, brain injuries and neurological disorders. In his free time, Mr. Vigh enjoys reading, exercising, playing sports, outdoor adventures and traveling abroad.

John Vail

Rockville, MD

John Vail has nearly 50 years of legal experience, serving in an Of Counsel capacity at Fay Law Group. He is recognized for his diverse training, community service, and extensive experience in State, Federal, and Supreme Court litigation. He has taught legal skills and management, and has held leadership roles in organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union.

Mr. Tracy has extensive experience representing clients in federal and state courts. His civil litigation practice includes a heavy emphasis in trust and estate litigation, complex commercial litigation, banking litigation and construction litigation. He works closely with Robert S. Tippett, the author of the The Utah Law of Trusts & Estates and one of the foremost trust and estate planning attorneys in Utah, on trust and estate matters. Mr. Tracy has represented several major financial institutions in banking litigation matters. Mr. Tracy has been awarded the Martindale-Hubbell® AV Preeminent® Rating, the highest rating awarded by Martindale-Hubbell to attorneys for professional competence and ethics. He has also been named to Utah Legal Elite. Prior to joining Bennett Tueller Johnson & Deere, Mr. Tracy worked with the international law firm of LeBouef, Lamb, Greene & MacRae (headquartered in New York City) and the national law firm of Chapman and Cutler (headquartered in Chicago). Mr. Tracy is a member of the Utah, Colorado and Idaho State Bars.

Mathurin Alemi

BIRMINGHAM, AL

Mathurin has been working with lfediba Law Group, P.C., since 2014 as a case manager and field representative. He assists in investigating catastrophic cases. Mathurin is a graduate in 2002 from the University of Rauen in France. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology. Mathurin is fluent in both English and French. Over the years, Mathurin’s dedication to his role and his multifaceted skill set have consistently contributed to the success of Ifediba Law Group, P.C. His blend of legal expertise, psychological insights, and linguistic proficiency makes him a crucial asset in navigating the complexities of the legal field and addressing the diverse needs of clients

Michael J. McDonagh

Milwaukee, WI

Michael uses his substantial legal and business experience to help business clients successfully navigate the complicated legal and regulatory environments involved in capital formation, transactions and ongoing operations. He represents for-profit and non-profit entities of all types and sizes, including manufacturers, contractors, engineers, high-tech concerns, retailers, franchisees, distributors, specialty service providers and medical practice groups. Michael's expertise in securities and health care regulations helps clients navigate successfully through some of the most difficult issues. Michael makes a significant effort to understand his clients' businesses and become more than just legal counsel, but a valuable advisor. Michael's prior experience serving as general counsel to a NYSE-listed corporation and its family of private and publicly traded affiliates, as well as partner at two of Milwaukee's larger law firms provides him a background and training well suited to advise clients at the highest level.

Fernando Fernandez

San Antonio, TX

Mr. Fernandez is a licensed Mexican attorney, certified as Foreign Legal Consultant by the State Bar of Texas. With more than 20 years of experience, he has helped Hispanics in the United States dealing with legal matters in their countries of origin. He’s an advocate for human rights and is devoted to help those who are underserved. Fernando Fernandez was born in Guanajuato, Mexico and is the only son of Claudio and Blanca Fernandez. He graduated from the Universidad Panamericana and holds two master’s degrees, one in Development, Innovation and Change from the University of Bologna, in Italy and a second one in Global Affairs from New York University (NYU). Mr. Fernandez speaks Spanish, English, Italian and French and is a certified translator in Mexico. Prior to join the firm, he worked for the United Nations in Rome, Italy; for the city of Irapuato in Central Mexico, as well as for the state of Guanajuato, where he specialized in assisting migrants from Mexico and Central America. Mr. Fernandez private practice in Mexico includes, family, civil, migration, and employment and labor law. Additionally, he has experience in corporate law and has been involved in the development of international projects.

Antonio Maria Varvaro graduated in Law in 1987 and qualified as a Lawyer in Italy in 1990. He is currently a Lawyer in Dubai with Rights of Audience before DIFC Courts. He is a member of the Rome BAR Association and has rights of audience before the Supreme Court of Cassation and Highest Courts Jurisdictions. Since 2010, he has been a Chartered Arbitrator with the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of London. He is also a member of CCBE and ILA, and an Adjunct Faculty of Commercial Law at the American University of Ras Al Khaimah. He speaks Italian, English, and French.

Tatiana Fotescu

Charlotte, NC

Mrs. Tatiana Fotescu is an associate attorney at Latorre Law Firm, specializing in the field of U.S. Immigration Law. Mrs. Fotescu successfully executed diverse and complex nonimmigrant/immigrant petitions and applications, which resulted in favorable adjudications, and zealously represented clients before the immigration courts (EOIR) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Prior to immigrating to the United States, Mrs. Fotescu earned two law degrees (J.D. equivalent) from University of Bucharest and Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne respectively. During her law school studies, she was actively involved in several student organizations and participated in international youth exchange programs in Europe and Asia. In addition, she worked as a legal intern at the Parliament of Romania, Moldovan Embassy to the United States of America, Canada and Mexico in Washington D.C. and at the New York office of the United Nations. Mrs. Fotescu moved to the United States to pursue her dream of having an international career. As an immigrant herself, she felt a strong motivation to start helping immigrants navigate the complex and continuously evolving system and ease the emotional rollercoaster which immigration entails. With great interest to become a licensed immigration lawyer in the United States, she graduated “cum laude” the LL.M. in Business Law program at Florida State College of Law, while being the LL.M. representative for the International Law Students Association and also a member of the Advocates for Immigrant and Refugees Rights organization and The Florida Bar International Law Section. Prior to joining Latorre Immigration Law Firm, Mrs. Fotescu worked for a private immigration law firm in Miami as an Associate Attorney gaining extensive experience in a wide range of immigration law issues.

Brett P. Percle

Slidell, LA

Brett P. Percle is an attorney at Clayton Law Firm. He graduated from Loyola College of Law with a Doctorate of Civil Law and a Certificate of Business, Law and Technology, where he obtained the highest grade in Torts 1. He also holds a Bachelor of Criminal Justice degree from Southeastern Louisiana University. Inspired by his own litigation experience, he brings a compassionate approach to his clients. He is admitted to practice law in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, and all state, local, and municipal courts of Louisiana. He is a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association and the Greater Slidell Bar Association. He is also an advanced French speaker.