Gerardo Villegas Juarez

Gerardo was born in Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato, Mexico and immigrated to the United States in 2001. He was proudly raised in the West Side of San Antonio. Gerardo first experienced the harsh consequences of immigration laws at twelve (12) years old when his father was deported. He feels a personal responsibility to fight to uphold the right to family. Gerardo is a first-generation high school graduate, and the first in his family to have attended University. Gerardo attended Texas A&M University where he was a member of the Corps of Cadets. After completing his undergraduate education, Gerardo joined the Teach For America corps; he was placed in the San Antonio region, in the district where he was raised. In 2020, the Excellence in Education Awards recognized Gerardo as the Rising Star in the State of Texas. Thereafter, Gerardo enrolled at the St. Mary’s School of Law. In law school, Gerardo was a staff writer for the Scholar: The Law Review for Race and Social Justice. He was the President of the Immigration Law Student Association and participated in the St. Mary’s Center for Legal and Social Justice as a student attorney in the immigration clinic. He interned in Guadalajara, Mexico with the Rhizome Center for Migrants providing post-deportation legal aid to deported veterans, deported Mexicans, and their U.S. citizen children. Gerardo has worked at Quintana Barajas PLLC since his first year in law school. Gerardo was awarded the Dean’s Award and graduated Cum Laude.

Gerardo is particularly passionate for removal defense, asylum law, and criminal defense. He believes that immigrants deserve honest, zealous, and relentless advocacy.