Sylvia Nunez ’11

With some two million residents hailing from 120 countries of origin and speaking over 135 different languages, Queens, NY has been dubbed the “World’s Borough.” Growing up there, as a child of parents from Ecuador, Sylvia Nunez had friends from diverse backgrounds and spent a lot of time taking part in their customs, eating their foods, and dabbling in their languages.

It was a deeply enriching and influential upbringing. “Having immigrant parents and taking part in the lives of so many people really shaped my perspective growing up,” Nunez says. “It certainly gave me a lot of empathy. Thanks to my parents, I was introduced early on to the beautiful world of books and language. I read and wrote a lot as a kid and teenager. That affinity ended up guiding my career path.”

Following her lodestar, Nunez worked as a writing tutor during college. Many of her students were recent immigrants to New York City. As she helped them develop their grammatical, organizational, and critical thinking skills, Nunez made an important discovery. “I realized that our lessons transcended school assignments and improved the students’ everyday lives,” she explains. “That experience sparked a passion for working with clients on a very direct and personal level. I decided that law was the most effective way to advocate for the benefit of everyday people, especially those living in the communities I grew up in and loved so much.”

At St. John’s, Nunez honed her advocacy skills. In the 1L Legal Writing classroom, she steered her writing style from the more creative to the persuasive. As a 2L student intern at the Catholic Migration Office, her work on housing matters drew her to the practice area. Pursuing that interest after graduation, Nunez worked for a nonprofit representing senior citizens in housing and other matters. She then went to the Legal Aid Society, where she supervised housing attorneys, paralegals, and interns as they navigated the new Universal Access to Justice Program in Queens Housing Court.

“The program was the initial implementation of a New York City law mandating that all tenants in housing court have access to free legal services,” Nunez says. “In my supervisory role, I oversaw litigation and helped to create policies which would effectuate the screening and representation of a large number of newly eligible tenants.” Although she found her work as an advocate and policy maker fulfilling, in time, Nunez knew she was ready for a change. When a Court Attorney position opened in Kings County Housing Court, she jumped at the opportunity. “I was drawn to work for the courts because it posed a new challenge— participating in housing practice from the perspective of the bench,” Nunez shares. “From the start, it’s been a great fit. Brooklyn’s housing court is one of the busiest in the state system. So I get to work closely with, and make court a more positive experience for, individuals on a daily basis. I’m also very aware of the challenges faced by unrepresented tenants who litigate their cases. As a court attorney, I try to demystify the court system, so those litigants find the judicial process more accessible and feel empowered as they engage in it.”

Nunez’s work in the court system has become even more critical in the wake of the pandemic. “Since evictions in New York can only occur pursuant to judicial order, court is where the crisis comes to a head,” she observes. “During the pandemic, there was a patchwork of tenant programs, laws, administrative orders, and court directives to help slow evictions. With many of those protections now lifting, thousands of families are more vulnerable.”

As she continues to offer guidance in housing court, Nunez is grateful to be on the path she first charted as a child. “I feel very lucky and privileged to have my job, and to be a positive force for people during such a stressful time in their lives,” she says. “I’ve always wanted to be of service to my community, and I get to do that every day.”