"It is just odd to me that I get paid to do this kind of work because when I was a kid, I could never imagine any lawyers helping people like me. I never realized that lawyers could do that."

Laura Contreras
Attorney
Columbia Legal Services

Laura Contreras lives in Toppenish, Washington, where she was raised. Her family emigrated from Mexico and Texas and settled in the Yakima Valley when Laura was born. She is the youngest of four siblings and the first to graduate from college. Laura has been married for 22 years and has two young children. She attended Yakima Valley Community College and the University of Washington. She earned her law degree from the University of Oregon.

After law school Laura was a judicial clerk for the Oregon State Circuit Court and then returned to the Yakima Valley to work with legal services. She has represented farm workers for 14 years and currently works for Columbia Legal Services. In 1999, Ms. Contreras started the Amigas Unidas Project in Yakima. The group provides training and support for farm worker women who are survivors of domestic violence.

Tell us about Amigas Unidas, the project you started in 1999.

Well, it is an example of why I love the work that I do. The Amigas Unidas Project has been an opportunity for me to work with farm worker women from the Yakima Valley and all over the state. At my first job in legal services all of my clients were mostly men, and I never ran into women like my mom, my aunts, and my cousins, who I knew were working out in the fields, but were unseen; nobody ever talked to the women.

Amigas Unidas created a network of women who support and empower each other while they deal with the reality of violent relationships. Our clients have been through so much. They have been shot at, have had their homes burned down, choked, burned with pans, hit with objects and scarred. They often feel they have nowhere to turn. I had one client show up in the office with her clothes, her bloody clothes that she saved because no one believed her partner was abusing her. I make sure that the women and their children are safe by helping them with family-law matters and coordinating the women volunteers.

What do you like best about your job?

It always amazes me that I get paid to represent farm worker woman in family law cases, that I get to talk to her in our own language and encourage her to keep moving forward, encourage her to go to school, encourage her so that she can do it on her own without having to get beaten up. It is something that I would normally do anyway, it is just odd to me that I get paid to do this kind of work because, when I was a kid, I never imagined any lawyers helping people like me. I never realized that lawyers could do that.

What did you think about lawyers before you became one?

I thought they all made a lot of money, they wore nice clothes, were very smart, respected and that they did good things. I found out that they don't all do good things, and that some of the lawyers that do the best things don't necessarily make a lot of money. I think that lawyers are kind of exclusive. I had hoped that they would be more inclusive and welcoming of others, but it has not always been like that. I do not always want to go to bar association functions because I often feel like I am the only one. I am in a room full of a bunch of lawyers, but I still don't feel like I am part of the group.

Part of that is because the population of Yakima has changed so much in recent years. Even though the population is almost 50 percent Latino there are still just a handful of Latina attorneys. I remember that once there was a bar association holiday party at the Yakima Country Club. I must confess that the only reason I went to that holiday party was because I had never been to the Country Club and I thought this would be my only chance to go. One of the most memorable bar celebrations I attended was when the Yakima Bar Association held an event at the old theatre in Toppenish. I, and others, really had fun. People were in my space and I was kind of like, "This is who I really am, this is the other me that you never see in Yakima." The location really made a difference.

Is there anything that people or organizations can do to make the practice of law more inclusive?

On a state level I think it is great that the bar association has meetings in Central and Eastern Washington. Having the west side folks come over here and spend time in Yakima is very helpful. We here often have to go to Seattle for one reason or another and it is nice for people to come and see our space and see where we live, see where we work and be genuinely interested in life outside of the Puget Sound area.

I also think that it would be wonderful if events could sometimes include families. As a mom and a wife, I am always trying to find ways to include my family at a conference or an event. It's hard to balance personal and professional responsibilities. Making the two less at odds with each other would be helpful.

Did anyone encourage you to go to law school?

My parents were always very supportive of me going to school, as was my husband. They always believed in me and gave me the confidence to just give it a shot. I feel very lucky.

What advice would you give students and young lawyers?

To students I would say that they should read, read, read anything and read it anywhere. In my house the only real book that was around was my mother's Bible. When I got to law school it was hard getting used to doing all that reading.

As a newer attorney I think the most important thing is to try to find a mentor or a person that you can vent to. You need someone you can talk to and can use as a sounding board. I was very fortunate that there were two or three women in the local bar association that I could spend some time with, share experiences and rely on their friendship.

Do you think you have been treated differently as a lawyer because you are a Latina?

Definitely. It's usually something indirect, but it can have a profound effect on me. It's hard to always speak up about it, but I have found that when I do, people, despite initial reluctance, hear what I am saying. I've seen people change after bringing issues to their attention and that gives me hope. It often takes time, but I have seen change. One thing that keeps me going in those circumstances is that I have the support of my family and my coworkers.

Is there anything that you would change about the practice of law?

I think much more needs to be done to make the bench more reflective of all communities across the state. We need people on the bench who understand what it is like for a farm worker or a Native American living in Toppenish. We need to have people who understand those realities, and I don't think the makeup of the bench is always reflective of that.

How do you define diversity?

I think diversity is when there is a mixture of many ideas and opinions and there is an environment that welcomes those ideas and opinions. If there isn't a safe environment to be able to express what you want to say then even if all the faces around the table look different there isn't any diversity at all.