“I’m thrilled to be joining IIBA as a Staff Attorney and Pro-Bono coordinator,” says Valentina Ozbek. In addition to providing immigration legal services to our clients, Valentina will be working with major technology companies and law firms to advance our pro-bono program and broaden our mission of empowering and serving the immigrant community in the Bay Area.
Valentina obtained a B.A. with Distinction from Stanford University in Political Science and a J.D. from Berkeley Law, Boalt Hall, where she was awarded the Advocacy Award. Before joining IIBA, Valentina was an associate at DLA Piper, LLP, where she managed multi-million-dollar real estate transactions and dedicated herself to various U Visa and asylum pro-bono matters. Furthermore, she has been advocating for marginalized members of society for the past decade. She started as an undergraduate intern at the Stanford Community Law Clinic, and later worked as a law clerk at Nolan, Barton & Olmos, LLP. She continued her clerical service in law school with the California Asylum Representation Clinic, the East Bay Community Law Clinic’s immigration unit, and the Habeas Corpus Resource Center.
As an immigrant from Cucuta, Colombia, Valentina has always felt a profound desire to advocate and enfranchise immigrants who may not have been as fortunate as herself. She looks forward to continuing to fight the good fight at IIBA.