Ruth Calvillo is Fry & Elder’s newest immigration law attorney and is licensed to practice law in both Oklahoma and California. She comes to the acclaimed Oklahoma law firm with numerous decorations and experience in immigration law. Calvillo will work closely with accomplished Fry & Elder immigration trial lawyer Lorena Rivas on high-stakes Oklahoma immigration law trials and procedures, particularly those involving criminal matters.
Calvillo is a first-generation American who grew in Los Angeles after her parents immigrated to America in the early 1980s from Guatemala. Her experiences growing up in a predominately-immigrant Los Angeles community helped instill in her the importance of advocating and fighting for immigrants, specifically victims of domestic violence and sexual assault through public service and community service.
“I grew up in a low-income community so for me to have the ability to be able to give back is something that I feel very passionate about,” Ruth Calvillo said. “I know how important it is for immigrants to have an advocate – someone who will fight for them. I am very passionate about working with victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. It is important to empower these people and show them that they don’t have to stay in an abusive relationship.”
Before joining Fry & Elder, Calvillo served as a legal extern for the Immigration Center for Women and Children in Los Angeles. Calvillo also was a George Kaiser Family Foundation Fellow for Women in Recovery. Calvillo worked as a legal intern for Rivas in 2015 and on the Immigrant Rights Project for the Boesche Legal Clinic. She additionally worked as legal intern in the juvenile division of the Tulsa County Public Defender’s Office.
Calvillo attended the University of Tulsa College of Law where she graduated with her Juris Doctor in in 2016. While in law school, Calvillo was the director and president of the Public Interest Board. She attended Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, California where at obtained a B.A. in Psychology.
MEMBERSHIPS:
HONORS & AWARDS:
CALI Excellence for the Future Awards in:
- Boesche Legal Clinic: Immigration Project
- Criminal Procedure: Adjudication
Martin H. Belsky Award in Public Interest Law
EDUCATION:
J.D., University of Tulsa College of Law, 2016
B.A., Claremont McKenna College, 2011