Snell & Wilmer Attorney Lindsey Martinez Honored with California Lawyer of the Year Award

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. - March 24, 2016 - PRLog -- The Daily Journal and California Lawyer magazine recently honored Snell & Wilmer attorney Lindsey Martínez who helped secure a groundbreaking victory for transgender women seeking asylum and legal protection in the United States. In addition to the presentation of this award to honorees at a reception in the Grand Ballroom of the Omni Hotel in San Francisco on March 15, 2016, a special edition of the Daily Journal will be published honoring the recipients.

In March 2015, Martínez argued the case before the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit seeking to overturn an intermediate immigration court's decision to refuse her client's claim for legal status in the United States based upon alleged past and future persecution and torture. The case was one of three brought by the Public Law Center, along with pro bono counsel from three separate law firms, on behalf of transgender asylum seekers and all three cases were argued on the same day before the same Ninth Circuit judicial panel. Decisions were rendered on the same day for all three cases, and the published opinion in Avendano-Hernandez v. Lynch is far reaching and precedent setting. It distinguishes gender identity from sexual orientation, identifies the unique vulnerabilities faced by transgender individuals and recognizes that the Convention Against Torture (CAT) does not require acquiescence of a higher level of government when low level public officials commit torture. This CLAY award recognizes the efforts by Martínez and the entire legal team behind the three cases.

Kirsten Kreymann, pro bono director of the Public Law Center stated that "this decision reinforces three things: the dire conditions immigrants face within our system, the right of all people to be treated fairly and the power of pro bono service that firms like Snell & Wilmer provide. These individuals faced mountains of obstacles in their quest for safety and justice; it takes the expertise and resources of firms such as Snell & Wilmer to overcome these challenges. We are grateful for their contribution to our community."

At Snell & Wilmer, Martínez concentrates her practice on business, franchise, intellectual property and construction litigation in state and federal court. She represents both large and small businesses in intellectual property and other litigation matters, including trademark, trade secret, unfair competition, patent, breach of contract, fraud, business dissolution and various business torts. She is also active in pro bono work assisting indigent non-immigrant victims of crime. Martínez received the California State Bar's President's Pro Bono Service Award in the recently admitted category in 2014 and the Wiley W. Manual Certificate for Pro Bono Legal Service from 2012-2015. Her more detailed biography is available online at https://www.swlaw.com/people/Lindsey_Martinez.

Martínez received her J.D. from The George Washington University Law School in 2010 and her B.A. from University of Connecticut.

About Snell & Wilmer
Founded in 1938, Snell & Wilmer is a full-service business law firm with more than 400 attorneys practicing in nine locations throughout the western United States and in Mexico, including Los Angeles and Orange County, California; Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona; Denver, Colorado; Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Los Cabos, Mexico. The firm represents clients ranging from large, publicly traded corporations to small businesses, individuals and entrepreneurs. For more information, visit www.swlaw.com.