Page 24 - November December CBA Report

PRACTICE/INTEREST GROUPS
For more information about becoming involved in a CBA group or committee, contact Membership at (513) 699-1406 or mymembership@cincybar.org.
WITH
THE
Maria T. Schneider
IMMIGRATION LAW
PRACTICE GROUP
CHAIR
24 What did you want to be when you grew up?
When I was younger, I wanted to be an English teacher at
either the high school or collegiate level. I toyed with this idea even
in college but ultimately decided to go to law school. However, I
now adjunct at UC Law, so I guess I got a little bit of both worlds.
What made you want to be an attorney?
In high school I had a bit of a feud with one of my teachers who
made some political comments during class. Long story short, he
was basically instructing the students how to vote in the upcoming
presidential election, Bush vs Gore. I wrote him a letter explaining
why I thought he should refrain from these types of comments,
and he asked to see me before class. Thinking I was in trouble, I
went to meet him before school one morning, and much to my
surprise, he complimented me on my articulate letter and apol-
ogized for his remarks. He suggested I look into law school, and
the rest is history.
Tell us about an important lesson you’ve
learned during your law career.
There is a lot they do not teach you in law school. Law school
focuses on the theory and policy of law but doesn’t really teach the
THE REPORT | November/December 2025 | CincyBar.org
practicalities of the practice of law or at least it didn’t when I was
in law school nearly 20 years ago. Much of the practice of law, in
my humble opinion, is an exercise in human psychology. Coun-
seling clients through difficult situations, understanding unique
personalities of clients and their personal goals, advising a client
when and how to take on risk, and making sure they are comfort-
able with that risk. At the end of the day, the client doesn’t care if
you – as their lawyer – think the law is “right” but only that you
are able to advocate for the client within the confines of the law
that exists. In my practice of immigration law this is true now
more than ever.
What are you goals for this year as Chair?
I hope to encourage individuals from outside the practice of
immigration law to attend our meetings and bring new interest to
the intersections of immigration law and other practice areas. One
of my favorite things about immigration law is that it crosses paths
with so many other areas of law: criminal law, employment law,
civil rights law, labor law, family law, etc. If you’re reading this
and do not practice immigration law – please join us for a CLE
or a meeting and bring your unique perspective to our practice.