About Our Immigration Lawyers
We believe that practicing immigration law is much more than a job – it’s a calling. Our team of immigration lawyers bring a wealth of knowledge, compassion, and tenacity to each case. Our immigration lawyers all speak fluent Spanish and are backed by a team of experienced and dedicated bilingual legal assistants and administrative staff. Together, we are Martinez Immigration Law.
ANDREA C. MARTINEZ
ANDREA C. MARTINEZ, ATTORNEY & OWNER
Andrea’s work covers most aspects of immigration law, from family-based visas and naturalization to immigration court removal defense and humanitarian visas. Prior to entering private practice, Andrea Martinez served as a federal judicial law clerk to the Honorable Eric G. Bruggink at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in Washington, D.C.
Andrea also worked for nine months in Guatemala assisting in the prosecution of child sex offenders with non-profit organization International Justice Mission. During law school, Andrea served as a summer law clerk to six immigration judges at the Arlington Immigration Court. She is fluent in Spanish.
Education
- J.D., American University Washington College of Law, 2007
- B.A., Cross-Cultural Services, John Brown University, Magna Cum Laude, 2004
- A.S., Broadcasting, John Brown University, 2004
Awards and Distinctions
American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Missouri-Kansas (MO-KAN) Executive Committee
- 2020-2021: Immediate Past Chair
- 2019-2020: Chapter Chair
- 2018-2019: Chair-Elect
- 2017-2018: Vice Chair
- 2016-2017: Secretary
“When I was a junior in college at John Brown University, a group of human rights lawyers from the International Justice Mission presented at my college about the injustice in the world and how we can fight injustice through the legal system. After that presentation, I went back to my dorm room and felt a deep calling to become a lawyer to advocate for and defend people who didn’t have a voice. I went to law school after graduating from college with the sole purpose of becoming a “human rights lawyer.” The only problem was, I didn’t know precisely what the term “human rights lawyer” actually meant.
I went to Guatemala to work with IJM for nine months but quickly learned that I couldn’t live in Guatemala forever and use my U.S. law degree. I returned to the U.S. and began a federal judicial clerkship in Washington, DC. I worked as a federal law clerk and pondered how I could be a human rights lawyer in the U.S. I was also in the process of marrying my Honduran husband and filing a petition with the U.S. Dept of Homeland Security for his green card. I learned through filing my husband’s permanent residence petition that the U.S. immigration laws are incredibly complex. I enjoyed helping my husband gain legal status in the U.S. and came to realize how important that service is to immigrants in the U.S.
I love being around people from other countries (and using my Spanish language skills when I can), so serving immigrants felt like an excellent fit for me. I became passionate about helping immigrants navigate the U.S.’s immigration laws and quickly realized that IMMIGRANTS’ RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS! I feel called to be an immigration lawyer and feel so grateful that God led me to this career. It is an honor to be able to serve and empower immigrants every day as an immigration lawyer.”
MEGAN GALICIA
MEGAN B. GALICIA, ATTORNEY & MANAGING PARTNER
Megan (pronounced “Meegan”) joined Martinez Immigration Law in 2017, focusing her practice on family and humanitarian petitions and removal (deportation) defense. Megan is a former teacher who lived and taught in Texas and Mexico before returning to her hometown of Kansas City to fulfill her dream of becoming an immigration lawyer. Megan graduated with honors from the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law in 2016 and is a former editor of the UMKC Law Review.
While in law school, she served as a judicial intern at the Kansas City Immigration Court. Megan is fluent in Spanish and is a frequent volunteer with the pro bono legal project at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas. Megan helped launch a Kansas City organization that trains lawyers to provide free legal representation to detained immigrants in immigration court bond proceedings. She is a member of the American Immigration Lawyer’s Association. (AILA).
Education
- J.D., University of Missouri–Kansas City, Magna Cum Laude, 2016
- B.S., Mathematics/Philosophy/Spanish, Rockhurst University, 2000
Awards and Distinctions
- 2021 Super Lawyers® Missouri & Kansas Rising Star
- 2019 Recipient of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Presidential Commendation
“My dream of practicing immigration law took root during a semester I spent volunteering with migrant farmworkers in rural Missouri. I was just back from a Spanish immersion program in Xalapa, Mexico, and eager to practice my new language skills. Suddenly, the ability to speak Spanish opened a new world to me, but one that I didn’t have to travel to experience. This community of farmworkers, many of whom were immigrants, opened their lives and homes to me. Speaking their language allowed me to witness and share their struggles, joys, heartaches, and triumphs. Even today, nearly 25 years later, I treasure what they shared with me and who they helped me become.
Comic Trevor Noah, who grew up in South Africa speaking multiple languages, said, “when you make an effort to speak someone else’s language . . . you are saying to them, ‘I understand that you have a culture and identity that exists beyond me. I see you as a human being.’” Understanding my clients’ stories and discussing their goals and concerns in their language is fundamental to my role as an attorney. I hope that clients leave my office carrying less of a burden than when they came in. Especially in the problematic immigration climate of the last four years, we don’t always have good news. Still, we do have this: the promise to treat each person with dignity, to give honest and reliable advice, and to work creatively to find the best way forward in each and every case.”
