The Hispanic Journal of Law and Policy is a law journal at South Texas College of Law Houston. Its purpose is to inform and significantly impact the Hispanic legal community in Texas and across the nation.

Established in 2016 by esteemed STCL Houston alumnus Benny Agosto Jr.`95, we are honored to serve as the academic home for this journal, which is sure to unite attorneys – as well as leasers in social work, public policy, government, and other fields – around pressing current topics.

The South Texas College of Law Houston Hispanic Journal of Law and Policy culminates the commitment and hard work of a number of individuals at the law school.  For years, it was the dream of some at STCL Houston to put together a law journal for the students and faculty, for the policy makers of this great country, and for all to see, reflecting the issues and ideas of the Hispanic community.  This journal makes history in the law school’s continued hard work and efforts to influence law and public policy that affects the United States and the Hispanic community.  We believe that the focus on these specific areas are of great interest to our readership.

The purpose of the journal is simple, to provide a forum and opportunity for the expression and dissemination of scholarly work on law related issues that affect the United States Hispanic community.  We hope that the Journal will help empower students, professors and authors, advocates and leaders to take on challenges, core principles, and to explore and reflect upon the needs of our society in order to find solutions and further progress.  It is our responsibility as lawyers to be a vanguard of such advancement in all aspects related to the law.

Monica Ortale ’93

Monica M. Ortale joined South Texas College of Law Houston in 1982 as a Circulation Librarian. During her career at South Texas Monica has held a variety of positions and taught Legal Research & Writing, while regularly conducting guest lectures in other courses. Her primary responsibilities include supervising Reference, Patron Services, Interlibrary Loan, and Government Documents and she participates in the administration of the Library.

Monica holds memberships in various professional organizations, including Houston Area Law Librarians (HALL), Southwestern Association of Law Libraries (SWALL), American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), and the International Association of Law Libraries (IALL). She held the office of President for both HALL and SWALL. On the national level, she co-chaired the local arrangement committee for AALL’s annual meeting in San Antonio in 2005.

Benny Agosto, Jr. ’95

Benny Agosto Jr., a partner with Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Sorrels, Agosto & Aziz of Houston, Texas was born in New York City and raised in Puerto Rico. From a young age, Mr. Agosto was taught by his parents that through hard work and determination, anything was possible – a principle he has applied throughout his life, in school, on the soccer field, and in the courtroom. “Both of my parents have a sixth-grade education,” Agosto shares, “and every day they would tell my siblings and me to be sure to get an education. I remember my father telling me that no one can ever take that away from you. My parents knew the struggles of being a migrant family without a formal education.” Hard work on the soccer field and in school paid off for Agosto. An avid soccer player in San Juan, Agosto was recruited by Houston Baptist University to attend and play NCAA Division I soccer. He went on to the University of Houston to work on his graduate degree in microbiology and taught high school and college students for six years. Agosto realized that although he loved teaching and coaching soccer, he needed more. He was accepted to South Texas College of Law Houston, where he excelled in mock trial and academics and is now a board certified trial lawyer.