Ezequiel Reyna Jr. '80
Managing Partner, Ezequiel Reyna Law Office
Philanthropist and entrepreneur.
The Power of UH Legal Education
Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month
The University of Houston Law Center celebrates Hispanic alumni, faculty, students and leaders whose accomplishments have made an impact on the legal profession, the judiciary, public service, education, business and our communities.
Hispanic Heritage Month Exhibit
Explore the University of Houston Law Center's celebration of Hispanic trailblazers, alumni, faculty, students and leaders. Use the Previous and Next buttons or the left and right arrow keys while viewing the exhibit to move through the slides.
Slide 1 of 21
Explore the People Featured in the Exhibit
Learn more about University of Houston Law Center alumni, faculty, students and leaders recognized during Hispanic Heritage Month for their achievements and contributions to the legal profession and their communities.
Pioneering Graduates and Students
Tony Bonilla '60
President, Bonilla & Chapa, P.C.
First Hispanic graduate.
Rosemary Saucillo '65
1938–2007
First Hispanic woman graduate; first Hispanic woman judge in Houston; first Hispanic woman appointed to Houston's municipal court.
Hon. Raul A. Gonzalez '66
Former Texas Supreme Court Justice
First Hispanic Texas Supreme Court judge; first Hispanic elected to statewide office; former member of the University of Houston System Board of Regents.
Distinguished Members of the Judiciary
Hon. Armando Villarreal Rodriguez '67
1940–2024
First full-time Hispanic judge in Houston and Harris County; founder, Houston Fiestas Patrias International Parade.
Hon. Fortunato Pedro "Pete" Benavides '72
1947–2023
Former Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
First alumnus of any background to serve as a Fifth Circuit judge.
Hon. Lupe Salinas '72
Former Judge, 351st District Court and Visiting District Court
Eugene Harrington Professor of Law, Texas Southern University School of Law; first Hispanic alumnus tenured at another ABA-accredited law school.
Hon. Josefina Rendon '76
Former state civil district judge
Former associate municipal judge; first Hispanic civil service commissioner; first Hispanic in Harris County to serve as a state civil district judge.
Hon. Juan Vasquez Sr. '77
Senior Judge, U.S. Tax Court
First Hispanic tax court judge.
Hon. J. R. "Bobby" Flores '80
Judge, 139th District Court
Hon. Gina Benavides '88
Former Justice, 13th Court of Appeals
First Hispanic woman elected Chair of the Texas Center for the Judiciary Board; former President, Mexican-American Bar Association of Texas.
Hon. Dori Contreras '90
Former Chief Justice, 13th Court of Appeals
First woman Chief Justice of the Texas 13th Court of Appeals; at the time of her election, the second Hispanic woman Chief Justice statewide.
Hon. Sofia Adrogue '91
Judge, Texas Business Court 11th Division
Former partner, Diamond McCarthy LLP; co-host and co-producer of Hispanic Voices: Smart Talk; former President, Houston Law Review Alumni Association Board.
Hon. Ernest "Ernie" Aliseda '91
Chief Operating Officer and Associate Vice President, Texas A&M University
Retired state district judge, 139th and 398th state district courts; former UH System Board of Regents member and municipal and state magistrate judge.
Hon. Carlotta Ramirez '99
Museum Counsel, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Former associate municipal judge, Houston, Texas.
Hon. Veronica Rivas-Molloy '01
Justice, 1st Court of Appeals, Texas
First immigrant to serve as a judge on the 1st Court of Appeals; third Hispanic woman to serve on the court.
Hon. Amparo Guerra '02
Justice, 1st Court of Appeals, Texas
Youngest serving judge on the Houston Municipal Court, 2005–2010.
Hon. Kristalee Mata '03
Associate Judge, Hidalgo County Probate Court
Appointed as the first associate judge of the court.
Hon. Michelle Slaughter '04
Partner, Johnson & Associates, PLLC
Former Justice, Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
Distinguished Government and Elected Officials
Dora Olivo '81
Former member, Texas House of Representatives
First Latina Justice of the Peace for Precinct 4 in Fort Bend County in a decade.
Vilma Luna '85
Former member, Texas House of Representatives
Consultant, Vilma Luna LLC; first Hispanic woman Law Center alumna in the Texas House of Representatives.
Armando Walle '14
District 140 Representative, Texas House of Representatives
Joe Rubio Jr. '80
Joe Rubio Law Firm
Former District Attorney for Webb and Zapata counties; youngest elected district attorney in the history of the district; longest-serving district attorney in the history of the district.
Jaime Esparza '83
Retired, El Paso County District Attorney
Graciela Saenz '86
Owner/Attorney, The Law Offices of Graciela Saenz
First Hispanic woman elected at-large to Houston City Council; former UH Law Foundation Board member.
Victor Carrillo '94
Member, Board of Directors, Germania Insurance
Former President & COO, Zion Oil & Gas; former Chairman & Commissioner, Texas Railroad Commission.
Notable Corporate and Civic Leaders
Vidal Martinez '77
Managing Partner, Martinez Partners LLP
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney, Civil Division, Department of Justice; former chairman of the Board of Directors, State Bar of Texas; former member, UH System Board of Regents.
Doris Rodriguez '80
Special Counsel, Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP
First Hispanic woman partner at a major Texas law firm.
J. Michael Solar '80
Founder and Managing Partner, Solar Law
Founding and first President, Houston Hispanic Bar Association.
Roxella Cavazos '82
Associate General Counsel, Alamo Community College District
Roxella T. Cavazos Endowed Scholarship donor.
Abel Martinez '90
Group Vice President of Partner Relations, Risk Solutions, & Government Affairs, HEB
Jacob "Jake" Monty '93
Managing Partner, Monty & Ramirez, LLP
Former member, UH System Board of Regents.
Emily Whittenburg '98
Global Head of Tax, LyondellBasell Industries
Efren Acosta '00
Partner, Reed Smith LLP
Juan Vasquez Jr. '01
Partner, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP
Mishell Parreno Taylor '03
Partner, Akerman LLP
Marisela Peña '05
Partner, Jackson Walker
Ana Cecilia Ibarra-Van Oostenrijk '05
Mexican Counsel, Blank Rome LLP
Eric L. Muñoz '06
Partner, Womble Bond Dickinson
Jose Vela Jr. LLM '08
Member, Clark Hill PLC
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice; retired Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army.
Natalie Alfaro Gonzales '09
Partner, Yetter Coleman LLP
Christopher H. Domingo '09
Partner, Jones Day
Luke Gilman '10
Managing Partner, Founder, Flywheel Law PLLC
Celina Moreno '10
President & CEO, Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA)
Catarina R. Gonzales '11
Vice Chair, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Western Water Cooperative Committee
Commissioner, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Andrew Cobos '11
The Cobos Law Firm
First Hispanic alumnus student regent, UH System Board of Regents; former Lieutenant, United States Army and Bronze Star Medal recipient; Cobos Law Firm Legal Scholarship donor.
Rochelle Garza '13
Commission Chair, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
President, Texas Civil Rights Project.
Melissa Gutierrez Alonso '13
Partner, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP
Outstanding Law Center Faculty
Jessica Bregant
George Butler Research Professor; Assistant Professor of Law
Associate Faculty, Department of Psychology.
Julian Cardenas Garcia
Research Assistant Professor
Director, Center for U.S. and Mexican Law.
Ryan Marquez '09
Clinical Associate Professor
Director, Civil Justice Clinic.
Daniel Morales
Dwight Olds Chair; Professor of Law
Jorge Rangel
President, The Rangel Law Firm PC
First Hispanic UH Law Center professor.
Sandra Guerra Thompson
Newell H. Blakely Chair and Professor of Law
Director, Criminal Justice Institute; first tenured Hispanic woman law professor in Texas; first tenured Hispanic woman at UH Law Center; first Hispanic woman law professor with a named Chair in Texas.
Elizabeth Trujillo '99
Mary Ann & Lawrence E. Faust Professor of Law
Founding Director, Initiative on Law and Policy for the Americas; first Hispanic alumna tenured and full professor at three ABA-accredited law schools; second Hispanic woman at UH Law Center with a named professorship.
Michael A. Olivas
1951–2022
Emeritus, William B. Bates Distinguished Chair in Law
Former Interim President, UH Downtown; President, AALS; first Hispanic UH Law Center professor with a named chair; first Hispanic UH Law Center Associate Dean for Student Affairs; first Hispanic UH Law Center Associate Dean for Research.
Stephen Zamora
1944–2016
Professor Emeritus
First Hispanic tenured UH Law Center professor; first Hispanic UH Law Center Dean; founder, Center for U.S. & Mexican Law.
Historic First
Sofia Winograd '25
Inaugural Law Clerk for Judge Angela Colmenero, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas
First Hispanic Editor-in-Chief of the Houston Law Review, Board 62.
Distinguished Law Center Staff
Carrie Criado
Assistant Dean, Communications and Marketing
Pilar Mensah
Assistant Dean, Admissions
We Celebrate You
The University of Houston Law Center celebrates the accomplishments and contributions of our Hispanic alumni, students, faculty, staff and community during Hispanic Heritage Month and throughout the year.
