MEXICO CITY – Nov. 9, 2022 –Elba B. Gutiérrez, Greenberg Traurig, S.C. Global Pro Bono Program manager, received the International Bar Association (IBA) 2022 Pro Bono Award at the group’s conference held in Miami Oct. 30-Nov. 4. The award is presented annually to a lawyer advancing pro bono.
Gutiérrez is recognized for her pro bono work in Mexico, where she has assumed a rare role for an attorney in that country – a full-time pro bono position where she not only leads the program’s administrative coordination but also actively handles cases. In 2017, with the support of shareholders, associates, and staff, Gutiérrez spearheaded the design and implementation of Greenberg Traurig’s Mexico City office pro bono program which has been a great success given the enthusiastic participation of the offices. The attorneys in GT’s Mexico City office have devoted more than 15,000 hours of pro bono legal services to organizations and individuals in the last few years, including work on impact litigation in collaboration with nonprofits and United Nations’ bodies. Among her contributions, Gutiérrez organized legal aid for victims of the 2017 earthquake in Mexico City and Oaxaca, designed a legal education syllabus for nonprofits, and collaborated with the firm’s efforts to represent more than 120 refugees in Mexico.
“We are very pleased to see this recognition of Elba's contribution to our Global Pro Bono Program,” said Greenberg Traurig Mexico City Pro Bono Program Shareholder Victor Manuel Frías. “Elba has certainly been an inspiration for everyone since day one. I am proud and grateful to have witnessed her impact on the team and on the whole Mexican pro bono ecosystem. We can only hope that she can continue to do so because the social task before us is enormous. Thank you, Elba, for everything.”
Elba’s work now extends far beyond Mexico. In 2021, she joined GT’s global team and now plays a central role in organizing and pushing forward many of the firm’s global pro bono initiatives.
“The firm is extremely proud of Elba’s work and her commitment to vulnerable communities around the world who require legal services to obtain basic human needs but who cannot afford attorneys,” Greenberg Traurig Global Pro Bono Program Chair and Litigation Shareholder Caroline J. Heller said. “We thank the IBA for recognizing her work and congratulate her on this very special honor.”
Gutiérrez concentrates her legal work on complex human rights breach cases through impact litigation. She often appears before the Mexican Commission for Refugee Aid, Constitutional Federal Courts, and the Mexican Supreme Court of Justice. She advises and represents people seeking asylum in Mexico and people claiming reparations from the Mexican State. Gutiérrez has additional litigation experience on matters related to antitrust and corporate law, representing companies before the Mexican Competition Commission and the International Chamber of Commerce.
About Greenberg Traurig’s Pro Bono Program: Greenberg Traurig lawyers across the firm’s offices provide pro bono legal services to the indigent and working poor, as well as to numerous civic and charitable organizations dedicated to assisting them. The firm focuses its resources on specialized and interrelated issues including civil rights and affirmative action, anti-human trafficking, family law matters, children’s rights, criminal appeals, immigration and political asylum, housing, and homelessness.
About Greenberg Traurig’s Mexico City Office: Greenberg Traurig’s Mexico City office offers clients innovative, strategic advice and legal services that span both traditional fields and contemporary regulatory sectors. The office has more than 60 bilingual attorneys who have been contributors to major national projects in Mexico and leverages the resources and reach of the firm’s global platform to provide clients with tailored legal services reflective of the specific industry and market conditions in which they operate. The Mexico City office is an integral part of the firm’s award-winning Latin America Practice, and has been recognized with leading competition, corporate, M&A, compliance, infrastructure, real estate, privacy, energy, administrative litigation, and banking practices in Mexico.
About Greenberg Traurig: Greenberg Traurig, LLP has more than 2500 attorneys in 43 locations in the United States, Europe, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East. The firm reported gross revenue of over $2 Billion for FY 2021 and is consistently among the top firms on the Am Law 100, Am Law Global 100, and NLJ 250. On the debut 2022 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard, it is a Top 15 firm. Greenberg Traurig is Mansfield Rule 5.0 Certified Plus by The Diversity Lab and the Center for Resource Solutions Green-e® Energy program certifies that the firm’s U.S. offices are 100% powered by renewable energy. The firm is often recognized for its focus on philanthropic giving, innovation, diversity, and pro bono. Web: www.gtlaw.com