Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ambar Maceo-Rossi. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ambar, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of the most important things small businesses can do, in our view, is to serve underserved communities that are ignored by giant corporations who often are just creating mass-market, one-size-fits-all solutions. Talk to us about how you serve an underserved community.

I’ve always been drawn to help or stand by people who cannot voice their concerns or are, for whatever reason, at a disadvantage. In school that almost always meant that I was speaking up or keeping other’s secrets because, in my view, everybody had their right to privacy and kids can be mean and nosy. As I went into middle school, my path in life was clear: I was going to become an attorney. I really didn’t know what that entailed but it sounded like a career where I would be able to defend others from the “injustices of the world”. Fast forward twenty-something years, I’ve discovered that the “injustices if the world” manifest in the little things of daily life for a lot of people: from not being able to access services due to a language barrier to being treated differently because of your background and/or your criminal record. Through my work, I’ve met wonderful people from all walks of life who have been caught in a system that may be legal but it’s not necessarily just. I’ve learned that serving the underserved is less about legal advice and more about compassion and empathy. From interpreting for someone who doesn’t speak the language to helping reunite someone with their loved ones, serving others, especially those who need it the most, is one of my proudest accomplishments.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Of course! My name is Ambar. I was born and raised in the Dominican Republic and came to the United States about 12 years ago. Since a very early age I had decided there were only two things I would do when I grew up: either I was going to be an actress or a lawyer. I guess when you think about it, there’s a lot of artistry involved in the legal profession, especially if you become a trial lawyer like I eventually did. I graduated law school in the DR and immediately began working in the litigation department of one of the largest law firms there. My passion had always been criminal defense, so I went on to Argentina for a 2-year master’s degree in criminal law. I chose Argentina because of the similarities between their criminal procedure with the one in place at the time in the DR. Little did I know that I would end up marrying and immigrating to the US several years later. When I landed in Massachusetts, I seriously considered switching careers as I wasn’t sure I had it in me to go to law school again, let alone sit for the bar exam! Thankfully, I quickly came to my senses, completed another master’s degree and sat for the exam. In between, I landed a job with a wonderful workers’ compensation firm where I learned the huge need for multi-lingual and multi-cultural attorneys in the state. I became passionate about helping people who did not have access to the legal system, both because they did not know the language but also because their attorneys could not understand their cultural background and therefore the distinct complexities of their legal case. I transitioned back to the criminal defense practice, almost by accident, when I was attempting to re-enter the workforce after maternity leave. I found that clients had the same needs but at a larger scale and with a lot more of risk. When your life and liberty are on the line you need representation, and your voice heard, and someone to make the judge see you for who you are and not for what you’ve allegedly done. That became and remains my purpose when I take on a case. I am now a partner at Kelleher & Maceo, P.C., a female-empowered law firm passionate about overcoming pervasive racial bias, unchecked police power, and rampant abuse of authority that exists at every level of state and federal government. We deeply care for and engage with our clients, and we persevere until we get their story heard and validated by a system who often times dismisses those from underserved backgrounds.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

It was November 2014 and I was anxiously waiting for the Bar Exam results. I don’t remember all the details but I may have chased the mailman for a block or two since I had started to see people posting their results and I had yet to receive mine. As you’ve probably guessed by now, my letter did not have a “Congratulations” on the first line: I had flunked the bar exam. As someone who had never failed a test in the past, that was hard. As an older attorney in a new country trying to prove herself, it was brutal. And I still had to tell my boss who had been extremely supportive and was confidently waiting to hear the good news. That same night, I made a decision: I was going to sign up to take the exam for the last time. There were no ifs and/or buts; if I did not pass I would have to find another career path. I decided that in order to give myself a better shot, I had to make the bar exam prep my job and so I gave my notice because I would have to be out for two months preparing for this test and I could not ask my employer to wait for me (but she did because she is awesome). I sat for the bar exam for the second and last time in February 2015, and have been able to help countless of clients ever since.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

There’s no bigger pivot than when you move to a foreign country. From learning or mastering a new language to getting used to the customs of that new place, everything can feel like a monumental challenge. In my case, immigrating to the states was no different. Although my situation was privileged compared to a lot of my fellow immigrants, trying to make a living as a foreign trained lawyer was no small task. For starters, the legal system in the DR is entirely different than in the US, so naturally I had to retrain myself and let go of some legal principles that had no place in a common law system. It was as if I was doing an entirely different thing to be able to do the same, if that makes sense.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.victoriouscause.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/ambarmaceo
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/victoriouscause
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ambarmaceo/
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/ambarmaceo

Image Credits
Boston Portrait Company