Jennifer Andrade, winner of the Government Attorney Award:

Jennifer Andrade is an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania in its Civil Division, where she has worked since January 2008. In April 2018, Andrade was named the Chief of the Civil Division.

Andrade previously served for two years as a federal law clerk to the Honorable Ila Jeanne Sensenich, for three years in private practice as a litigation associate.

She has served as an instructor at the National Advocacy Center in South Carolina, and in several leadership positions for the Allegheny County Bar Association and Foundation, most recently as its Vice President.

Andrade is also currently in her second three-year term as a Pennsylvania District IV Senior Hearing Committee member, where she conducts hearings and makes recommendations to the Pennsylvania Disciplinary Board regarding cases of attorney discipline.

Andrade is a graduate of Boston University, and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.
 

Jacqueline B. Martinez, winner of the Solo Small Firm Award:

Jacqueline Martinez is the founder of JBM Legal, LLC, a full service law firm through which she has provided legal representation for the immigrant community in Pittsburgh since 2002. She previously worked as in-house counsel for a large international IT company, where she developed expertise in Employment Based Immigration and Global Immigration.

Martinez currently serves on the board of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, where she chairs the Diversity Committee. She is also the chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Membership Development Committee and the Immigration Law Committee.

Martinez has been an active member of the American Civil Liberties Union, where she is currently a co-chair of the Diversity Committee.

While her current practice specializes in Business Immigration, Martinez is also well-versed in Family Immigration, Naturalization, and Deportation and Removal proceedings. She received her B.S. from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and her J.D. from the Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law at Arizona State University.

Ed Lanza, winner of the Pro Bono Award:

The late Ed Lanza was a seasoned litigator and regulatory attorney with more than 15 years of experience in utilities and telecommunications law, energy regulation, civil litigation and administrative law.

Born in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Lanza, early in his career, served as a Judicial Clerk to the Honorable William H. Kaye on the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas. He went on to work as a litigator and regulatory attorney in the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate. In this role, he represented residential ratepayers before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and state and federal courts.

Lanza later moved on to private practice, where he represented regulatory entities on safety requirements, power and service contracts and affiliated interest agreements.

Lanza received his B.A. in Political Science from Messiah College, and his J.D. from Penn State’s Dickinson Law School.

Lanza passed away earlier this year at the age of 52, after battling a rare form of cancer.

James ‘J.P.’ Faunes, winner of the Mid to Large Firm Award:

Originally from Austin, Texas, James ‘J.P.’ Faunes has been a lawyer at Philadelphia’s Feldman Shepherd law firm since 2016, where he focuses on medical malpractice cases.

Faunes previously worked for almost three years as a Deputy City Solicitor, where he litigated personal injury claims on behalf of the City of Philadelphia Law Department. In this role, he represented city police officers, firefighters and departmental employees. Prior to working as a Deputy City Solicitor, he represented corporate clients in contract and regulatory matters at two large Philadelphia law firms.

Faunes is currently the Treasurer on the Executive Board of the Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania. He is also the Vice President of the Association’s Legal Education Fund.

Faunes graduated from Swarthmore College with a B.A. in history. He received his J.D. from Temple University, where he was a staff editor on the Temple Law Review.

Brenda Marrero, winner of the Non-Profit Award:

Brenda Marrero is currently the Deputy Director of Operations at Philadelphia’s Community Legal Services (CLS), where she has worked since 2008. Prior to becoming Deputy Director, Marrero served as Supervising Attorney in CLS’ Aging and Disabilities and Supplemental Security Income Units.

Before joining CLS, Marrero worked at Maximus Federal Services, where she supervised an appeals team, and adjudicated Medicare Part A appeals. She also previously worked as a Staff Attorney at the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania. In this role, she represented low income HIV/AIDS clients in matters regarding social security disability appeals, healthcare and workplace discrimination, and healthcare privacy and confidentiality law.

Marrero currently serves on the board of the Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania as well as the Association’s Legal Education Fund.

Marrero graduated with a B.A. in political science from Mount St. Mary’s College in Los Angeles, and she earned her J.D. from Temple University.