President's Message

Meet José Gonzalez, the New President of the HBA
By Genoveva Meza Talbott

It should come as no surprise that the Hispanic Bar Association of Orange County has elected for its President a hardworking, dedicated attorney to lead the organization in 2012. The son of Mexican immigrants, José's path to the law was far from traditional. Growing up in Orange, California, José spoke only Spanish until the third grade. Although José had attended college, he was unable to graduate. Instead, José was hired to work as a file clerk for a personal injury and worker compensation law firm in Orange County, California. This is where his interest in the law was first sparked. As his career blossomed, he showed promise of being a great attorney by moving from file clerk to legal assistant representing clients in administrative law court. The partners he worked for recognized the makings of an outstanding attorney and encouraged José to apply to law school. José applied and was accepted to Trinity Law School. He put himself through law school while working full time at the firm. After graduating and passing the bar in 2005, José continued working at the same firm where he quickly became a name partner.
 
José embodies this year's installation and scholarship fundraising dinner theme "Marking the Path to Success." In 2009, José was appointed to the Board of Directors of Orange County Bar Association and elected to the Executive Board of the HBA. He is also serving as Co-Chair of the Workers' Compensation Section of the Orange County Bar Association. As a partner of Berman More Gonzalez, José and his partner Keith More, former President of the OCTLA, work tirelessly to represent the interests of their clients whose lives have been shattered by devastating injuries.
 
Arguably, José's greatest accomplishment is his family- he is happily married to his wife Patricia and has two daughters, Alexis and Kaylie. Yes, he is outnumbered! He finds time to coach his daughters' softball teams, and enjoys spending his weekends with his extended family. "Like many of us, my success has been fueled by my desire to improve my family's lives and surround myself with their support and encouragement," said Gonzalez.  
 
José will take on a new chapter in his life with great passion. "My focus this year is to continue building on the revamped mentor program which was reignited in 2011," he said. "Another equally important issue is to strengthen our efforts to identify and encourage more Latina(o) judicial candidate applicants to ensure that qualified applicants stand ready and able to be considered for judicial appointments by our governor."  
 
We all look forward to seeing the HBA continue to grow and enrich the Orange County legal community with José at the helm.