Thomas M. Oliva, Esq.

 

President, Latino Lawyers Association of Queens County. Heights native, born to Cuban and Puerto Rican parents Thomas M. Oliva, Esq. has spent his life fortifying the roots of the communities that raised him, by carving paths to opportunity and inclusion through advocacy and the arts.

After graduating from City College of New York with a B.F.A., Oliva started the first semi-equity theater company at Long Island City’s LaGuardia Community College, and after completing his Juris Doctor degree with Hofstra School of Law he went on to found the first chapter of the Latino Law Student Association, where he also served as treasurer for the Black American Law Students Association. In the transition from education and the arts to advocacy and career, Oliva became further active in conversations inciting the inclusion and representation of Latino voices in Queens. Oliva has shared years of knowledge and experience in personal injury law through free community lectures and legal education courses. Oliva’s presence holding a decades-long position as President of the Latino Lawyers Association of Queens County and cohort of the Latino Bar Associations has shifted the majority of bench members to those of Latino origin. His years of legal work as an Assistant District Attorney for the Bronx, partner of Pena & Kahn Firm, the Special Victims Bureau, and service on the Board of Editors for the New York Law Journal has earned him the honor of recipient of the Super Lawyers Award for the past eight years. Thomas Oliva continues to uplift the communities of Queens, The Bronx, and beyond through his tireless service and dedication to equity and representation.