Attorneys:
Claire Cifuentes, Esq.Claire Cifuentes, Esq. is the managing attorney and founder of the law firm. Attorney Cifuentes obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of California- Los Angeles in 1990 and her Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School in 1993.
In 1997 she founded the law firm as a solo practitioner (originally known as Law Offices of Claire Cifuentes). Due to its evolution, expansion, and growth the firm changed its name to Cifuentes Knapp & Associates in 2004. Claire has been admitted to practice before the California Supreme Court, the U.S. District Court, Central District, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Claire has been very involved with the legal community and with the immigrant community at large. Evidence of this commitment is that she served on the board of the Mexican American Bar Association (MABA) for about 6 years. She was President of the Mexican American Bar Association in 2005 and headed their Immigration Committee in 1998-1999. She has also been a mentor, liaison and speaker for the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). She is also an active member of the Los Angeles County Bar (LACBA)’s Immigration Section. Claire has provided much time in a volunteer capacity as an Immigration News Commentator on Channel 26, KSFV, Noticiero Centro Americano, a Spanish news broadcast from 2001-2005. She has also appeared quoted in print for Aviso Newspaper (formerly L.A. Nueva Era Newspaper), La Opinion “Para Ti”, and other news outlets. She has contributed her time to provide free advice to the community through the Central American Resource Center (CARECEN), the Mexican Consulate, the Honduran Consulate, El Rescate, and the Guatemalan Unity Information Agency (GUIA). She helped co-organize the ABA/CARECEN/MABA NACARA Pro Bono Representation Project in 1997-1998. Claire has been nominated twice by the National Latina Business Women Association (NLBWA) for the Latinas in Business: Law Nominee in 2011 and 2012. Claire has native fluency in Spanish language and culture. |