Noemi Puntier is the Founder and Principal Attorney at Puntier Law Firm, LLC, a community-based firm exclusively representing immigrants in family and immigration matters. In every aspect of her work, Noemi aims for excellence, integrity, and transparency. Along with her associate, Richard Panachida, she hosts a radio and Facebook show called Café con Leyes to educate listeners on the latest legal issues.
While Noemi enjoys serving as an advocate and attorney on a daily basis, her true passion lies in reaching underserved young women. She is part of the #heelsinthecourtroom movement, where she combines faith, law, and entrepreneurship to encourage and uplift female attorneys. Noemi also founded Girl Lawyer on a Mission to provide a platform and support system for young women aspiring to enter the legal field.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
- Noemi Puntier discusses her background and how that fueled her passion to serve others
- Why Noemi began her own law firm
- Noemi’s most memorable win
- What has Noemi learned about running a business from Luis Scott?
- A stand-out immigration case in Noemi’s career
- The best advice Noemi has received: be unapologetic about your dreams
In this episode…
Growing up in the Bronx in an immigrant family, Noemi Puntier was taught to dream big and be a shining light in the world. She now dedicates her career to serving others, offering legal services to support immigrant families in her community. How did she get her start, and what has she learned along the way?
As a first-generation college graduate, Noemi didn’t have a clear path laid out for her. So, driven by her desire to have a bigger voice and a greater impact in the community, she reached out to an acquaintance who helped her get her start in small claims court. Moving up the ladder — and eventually into a corporate firm on Wall Street — Noemi decided that she wanted to share her passion through her own firm. Now, she’s providing tools and advice to educate other lawyers with a passion to serve.
In this episode of The Guts and Glory Show, Chad Franzen talks with Noemi Puntier, Founder and Principal Attorney at Puntier Law Firm, LLC, about using passion to fuel big dreams. Noemi shares some astounding stories from her career, the best advice she’s received from her mentors, and how she’s working to support other growing lawyers.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Noemi Puntier on LinkedIn
- Noemi Puntier on Instagram
- Puntier Law Firm, LLC
- Puntier Law Firm, LLC on Instagram
- Puntier Law Firm, LLC on Facebook
- Girl Lawyer on a Mission
- Sallie Manzanet-Daniels
- Chad Franzen on LinkedIn
- Luis Scott on LinkedIn
- 8 Figure Firm
- Bader Scott Injury Lawyers
Sponsor for this episode…
This episode is brought to you by 8 Figure Firm.
Co-founded by Luis Scott and Seth Bader of Bader Scott Injury Lawyers, 8 Figure Firm helps transform your law firm into a 7-figure or even 8-figure firm.
After their own law firm scaled from $3.5 million in revenues to $30 million per year in revenues in just two years, Luis and Seth started the 8 Figure Firm to share their strategies and help other law firms achieve exponential growth.
Visit www.8figurefirm.com to receive a consult call and start scaling your business today.
Episode Transcript
Luis Scott 0:00
I’m Luis Scott, Managing Partner of Bader Scott Injury Lawyers, one of the fastest growing law firms in the country. And I’m also the co founder of 8 Figure Firm Consulting. I’ve successfully built multiple companies by focusing on leadership, operations and culture. Using these principles, my companies have generated close to $100 million in revenue. But before any of this success, I started my legal career as a receptionist, and I worked my way up to becoming managing partner. And each episode of this podcast I sit down with leaders and entrepreneurs who have had the guts to step out on their own and the courage to face adversity. They share with us their tips for achievement, the challenges they have faced, and the glory of success. I welcome you to The Guts and Glory Show.
Chad Franzen 0:46
Chad Franzen here, one of the Co hosts of The Guts and Glory Show. We feature top leaders who share challenges of leadership, the guts it tastes to succeed, and the glory of success. This episode is brought to you by 8 Figure Firm Consulting. At 8 Figure Firm they help law firms grow to eight figures. Luis Scott was telling me when he started his career he was working over 80 hours a week to make partner and that he finally started his own law firm and wished he had someone walking him through the steps to growth. At 8 Figure Firm they show you how to develop a business that works for you instead of you working for it. Go to 8figurefirm.com to learn more. Today, we have Noemi Puntier. I’m sorry, Noemi Puntier, founder and owner of Puntier Law Firm. A boutique firm exclusively representing immigrants in family and immigration matters. She also hosts a radio show where she educates listeners on the latest legal issues and is part of the hashtag heels in the courtroom movement where she combines faith, law, and entrepreneurship to encourage and uplift female attorneys. Noemi, thanks so much for joining me today. How are you?
Noemi Puntier 1:45
I’m great. Chad, happy to be here with you.
Chad Franzen 1:49
It’s great to have you. So tell me a little bit more about your law firm and the kinds of clients you serve?
Noemi Puntier 1:55
Well, we are exclusively I like to say exclusively because it’s like 99% of immigrants that we represent. And we fight to keep them here in the United States to get them legal status to protect them from family separation. So anything that has to do with maintaining the integrity and the peacefulness of immigrants that are undocumented in Georgia, we try to aim to achieve that while we represent them.
Chad Franzen 2:21
Can you tell me before we get more, before we get more into your legal practice? Can you tell me a little bit about what life was like for you growing up?
Noemi Puntier 2:29
Well, that’s a very inspiring story. I am an immigrant myself, I came to New York, United States when I was approximately nine years old, I grew up in very, very humble beginnings. We like to call them the projects in the Bronx. In we were very humble. And that’s another word for poor in so my upbringing was very hard. But it was also very blessed. It taught me perseverance, it taught me to dream bigger, and always look for that shining light. Because, you know, we we grew up in very, very different and difficult situations in the Bronx. And being an attorney was not my first passion. Ironically, my first passion was just to serve and help others. And I didn’t really know what that meant, or what that was gonna look like. But I knew that being poor and an immigrant and a woman, and being the first person to even attend college or graduate high school in my generation, and our family history, it meant that I needed to find a place where I can contribute and give, give more to the world. So I went to school for and I said, Well, I’m just gonna, when I graduate college, I’m just going to be a social worker, right? Because social workers help everybody. And I did that in Harlem for quite a while then I got tired, I got a little bit overwhelmed. And I got promoted to another non for profit organization where I led a group of women who were coming out of being in the welfare system now getting on their feet and gaining employment, getting back into the employment field. And after a while, I came to the point that I said, I want to do more, and where can I elevate myself to what what can I do to put me in a position that I will have a bigger voice and a greater impact in our community? So I said, Well, I’m going to go to law school. And wow. And that’s what I did. But I didn’t know any lawyer. So I had no clue how I was gonna get to law school. All I knew is that lawyers were powerful, and I want to be powerful, and I want to help people, right?
Chad Franzen 4:41
So there was no like legal issue or something like that, that you had been involved in that made you decide to become an attorney. You just want more influence.
Noemi Puntier 4:48
Yes, it was more about our platform to be able to fight, fight bigger fights, and have a bigger voice in the community. So I’m a planner, and I started figuring out like, what do you need to do to get into law school And I figure that I need to meet a lawyer, right? Talk to one lawyer at least. So I was very blessed that I knew someone who knew as the supervising judge in the Bronx. And she kind of took me under her wings. I started volunteering in small claims court. And that’s where I met my mentor, Sallie Manzanet-Daniels, she’s not in the Appellate Division, and she really, really nurture our relationships. She, she gave me everything I didn’t have. When I was growing up, I saw a lot of myself in her she was the first Puerto Rican woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court in the Bronx. And she had a drive and a desire to help others. And I gravitated towards that. And I think she also saw the hunger in me, and helped me just, you know, navigate the law school system. And then I went, I got into law school, I graduated and and here I am.
Chad Franzen 5:49
So what did you do in between law school and starting Puntier Law Firm?
Noemi Puntier 5:55
So I, I knew I want it you see, I always know what I want, right? always starts with serving. So I said, Where can I serve bigger and have a greater opportunity to make a bigger impact. So I wanted to be a public defender. And that’s what I did. I was a legal a society, I worked for the library society as a public defender, and we had a negative reputation, because you know, public defenders, they’re looked at as overwhelmed, overworked, they don’t care. And I said, I’m going to be the difference, I’m going to be that one public defender that’s going to try cases the right way that’s going to grow rapidly, that’s going to make an impact in the field, that’s going to make an impact in the lives of their clients that will really defend what they’re fighting for, and protect them and not make sure they get railroaded in the system. And I did that, and I grew very quickly in my field. So I did that for like five years, and then I got burned out again. So it’s it. It’s a pattern of this burnout. So I had to learn how to just pace myself, and then really seek, what is it that I want to do long term, and I made a promise to myself that if I was ever hesitant to return a client’s phone call, then it was time for me to switch careers. So from there, I went to do personal injury at a very, very big law firm on Wall Street. So I went from the ghetto, being a public defender to this wonderful window across, which was back then, you know, whether the Twin Towers were and, and that’s when I realized that my calling really is being on the ground helping those that can help themselves. And then I went on my own. What was it about
Chad Franzen 7:33
your, about your life growing up that made you so passionate about serving? You know, I know, people who grew up maybe in humble circumstances, they’re like, Well, I’m gonna, I’m gonna make more money than my parents ever made. And I’m gonna be rich, be rich or whatever. But you just wanted to help people. What was it about your upbringing that made that come about?
Noemi Puntier 7:52
I think I’ve unbeknownst to me, but now that I look back, you know, I’ve always had this grace upon me, where I always found other individuals that were willing to help me. And I also learned at a very young age, that it was gratifying to help some other people, it brought us a certain joy into my life. And I think it’s part of my identity, just sort of getting that feeling of wow, I can make a difference in someone’s life. Because when you make a difference in one person’s life, that sort of it has a domino effect into our world, our society where our children’s are living, you know, and you just never know you pay it forward. And I think it was that driving that feeling of always wanting to get more because I thought I was highly blessed, even though I grew up in very humble beginnings.
Chad Franzen 8:34
So how did you get started with with your law firm?
Noemi Puntier 8:38
Well, I am originally you know, I’m born in New York, and then in licensed there and then I came here I’m licensed here in Georgia. But I came at an earlier age and my career. So when I come to Georgia, I couldn’t find work. Ironically, it’s like, yes, your experience, but you just learn, you’re just learning Georgia law. And I went to interview for particular farm, and here in Georgia, and never they were doing immigration. And I saw this huge crowd of immigrants just desperately waiting to see this, this attorney, right. And I will say, Wow, this is my place, right? Like, this is where my ministry is gonna take place, I can help all these people. And I remember speaking to the owner, and I said, When are you going to make a decision about attorney and he said, probably like, in a day or two, and I remember, you know, getting into my car in the parking lot and telling my husband, this is the place where I’m gonna, like, just make so many people happy. And after two days, I email the owner of the farm, and I say, Hey, have you made a decision and he never responded. And to me, I believe that the way you behave or the way you do one thing is how you do everything in life. And I remember having a conversation with my husband saying that says a lot about that attorney that he didn’t take out a minute or two to thank me because I also said, hey, you know, I can refer you cases but just Have you no professionalism and just courtesy say it, you know, it was great meeting you, but I’m giving the job to someone else. So I said to myself is someone with that level of character can have such a successful firm here, then I think I have a chance. And that’s what I did.
Chad Franzen 10:15
Great. Great. Congratulations. Very nice. So what’s the favorite story that you have from your practice? So far? I’m sure you have several books.
Noemi Puntier 10:25
I Yes. But I’m gonna give you the funniest one, which is when I was a public defender. So I defended this boxer. And he really like beat up the other guy, right? So he gets arrested, he beats up this other guy. And I’m like, nobody wants to try the case. And of course, I’m like, Yeah, I want to be the best trial lawyer. So I’ll take the case. And I develop a practice as a as an attorney, where I will always seek those that have more knowledge than I did, or that were in a position where I saw myself where I wanted to be. So I will ask all these senior lawyers to prep with me, and you know, it was a self defense. So this, you know, experienced boxer is coming here to say he was defending himself from this other boxer. And I remember the eve of trial, I go into one particular attorney, and I say, Hey, I’m trying this case tomorrow, and I’m to my theory, and you know, the victim is this guy, and he’s also a boxer, he looks at me, he says, Wait a minute, who’s your victim? Again, you know, we don’t call the victim we say the complaining witness as defense attorneys. And I mentioned his name. He said, Wait a minute, that guy is the only professional boxer who has been indicted for killing someone what he was fighting. I said, Are you kidding me? He says, Yes. And he pulls out like this from the internet, this newspaper article, he says, Yes, this guy when he had a fight, he put in some illegal. I don’t know if it was like cement or something that when he punched the other boxer, he really injured him. And he was arrested for this. And I said, I’m going to use this. So I won the case, because I was able to destroy this particular complaining witness slash victim when he came there saying, Well, I was hurt. And it wasn’t self defense, I really, you know, presenting him as this evil person who had injured you know, this other boxer in in the history of boxing in the Bronx. And I think that was interesting, because that goes to show that you, you never, you never stopped learning. You always got to seek other advice from other attorneys that are higher on a different level than you’re in.
Chad Franzen 12:28
Sure, sure. Very nice. Speaking of that, I’d love to talk about some other lessons learned in your practice journey. How did you discover 8 Figure Firm and Luis Scott?
Noemi Puntier 12:38
Well, I think I mentioned this to Luis, but he may not recall. So I somehow I saw Luis’ picture on Facebook. And it was a picture of him on his desk, and he had his arm raised, and it was resting on a couple of books. And there’s just something about that picture that it just it send me a message, right. I’m a woman of faith. So I believe that it was, it was God’s way of connecting us. So he didn’t know me, you know, and I didn’t know him. And I said, You know what this guy has, it seems like he has something very good to offer. And I just continue following him for years. This is before he was, you know, before he was owner of Bader and Scott, and I just continue following his growth as a professional. And finally, when he did his mastermind, he in Georgia reached out and I said, Hey, you know, can I attend. And that’s when, you know, our little relationship started. So I had been a fan of his for a very long time, and I saw how he was just growing and growing and growing.
Chad Franzen 13:43
Here are some lessons that you’d say you learned from him so far.
Noemi Puntier 13:47
The best thing about Luis aside from the fact that he has integrity and a great reputation is that he gives you a book, a blueprint of where you what you need to be doing and where you need to get to. He is not your regular mentor, your regular mastermind group where he’s teaching you stuff that he learned from somebody else. This is an individual who took a firearm from a certain level and raised it to a position where they’re one of the fastest growing law firms in Atlanta. So when I meet with Luis, I’m hearing it from the horse’s mouth. He’s telling me the mistakes he’s made. He’s telling me what needs to be done. So when I tell him my vision and what I want, it’s very easy for him to say, this is what you’re doing wrong. This is what you’re doing right and this is how you’re going to get there.
Chad Franzen 14:34
Can you give me an example maybe of you know, I speak to a lot of people who, who they’re very skilled and talented attorneys, but you know, in terms of running their own business or whatever, there’s a few things that they they may need to catch up on. Can you give me an example maybe of how kind of Luis’ advice changed your practice a little bit?
Noemi Puntier 14:53
Well, the confidence that comes with the knowledge that he gives you is priceless because it also With a confident demeanor, you’ll have the confidence and you’re starting to implement the things that he’s telling you. But he really gives you a game plan. So as as a business owner, I was just an attorney, I was being passionate. I was, you know, meeting with clients and trying to grow the firm and also go to go to court. But when you meet with Luis, you understand that the passion needs to plan. He’s not telling you to give it to the passion, but he’s saying, let’s take this passion. And now let me give you some, let me give you a game plan so you could achieve what you want. And this is what you’re doing wrong. So let’s start doing this. And you just start seeing yourself at a position that now you’re a business owner, not just an attorney, so you make decisions differently. You hire differently, and you start having meetings with different with a different view and a different objective. At the end, you’re just not rolling with the punches, which is what we do, we roll with the punches, because we’re just trying to be lawyers, he basically equips you with the tools, so you can do what you want and run your firm as a business.
Chad Franzen 16:01
Since this is The Guts and Glory Show, we like to get some more stories from the people we talk to. Can you tell me a story that involved guts like something that that where you overcame something, it took some guts to get there? Um,
Noemi Puntier 16:13
well, yes, we had a case in Georgia where we found it was an immigration case where we filed a motion to suppress. And it took a lot of guts to go forward in front of this judge and make these arguments that the the officers from ice did something constitutional, and therefore this client should not be in removal proceedings. And we won. And it was, I think, the first case that that happened in Georgia, but you know, then the media got involved. And that changed things. But it took a lot of guts to take that approach, because it had not been done before.
Chad Franzen 16:50
What about like, what about a glory story? Something where you know, you were kind of very broad? Yes.
Noemi Puntier 16:55
Well, one that I’m extremely proud is a consultation of a client that came to me for a work permit. He was here and documented. for over seven years, he enter with a tourist visa, somehow he got a work permit through humanitarian parole program, he comes to me, I interview him, and we realized that he was actually a United States citizen. So that’s a glory story. Yeah. Imagine. Imagine being undocumented. Right. And then you go to me with an attorney about a work permit. And she’s able to, based on the questioning and your family history determined that you in fact, you know, obtained your citizenship from your father, who was a United States citizen when he was born. So now he’s a United States citizen, he was all along. Now he is he’s petitioning his wife is petitioning his mother. He’s petitioning his stepdad. And it’s just a domino effect of discovering that one beautiful miracle that he was unaware of.
Chad Franzen 17:51
Can you tell me about your, your radio show? I mentioned that a little bit in the introduction?
Noemi Puntier 17:55
Yes. So in my radio show, it’s really an opportunity for me as a woman of faith as an entrepreneur, and as an attorney to combine my passion while I’m there, so I do a lot of encouragement for women to just go and do you know, what they wish for what’s in their heart. Also, I encourage my clients to utilize prayer in their cases. So it’s really a space where we’re talking about the latest legal news, but then we’re gonna plug in a little bit of pricing there. And then we’re also gonna give you some motivation for 30 minutes. So and that’s what we do every Tuesday and Thursday.
Chad Franzen 18:30
Good, good for you. Very nice. I just have one more question for you. But first, can you just tell me how people can find your radio show and also find more about your law firm?
Noemi Puntier 18:40
Yes. So they can follow me on instagram heels in the courtroom. And that’s where you can see me post a lot about my faith and my business. On Facebook is our rather, which is attorney in Spanish knowing Puntier, or you can also go to my Instagram for my phone, which is Puntier Law Firm. And the radio station is FM 100.9. And I’m there every Tuesday and Thursday from 510 to 540. And I also, you know, put it in Facebook, so they follow me on Facebook, they’ll see the show there.
Chad Franzen 19:10
Okay, very nice. Final question for you. You mentioned your mentor, can you tell me who that is again, and then just maybe tell me some of their best advice for you?
Noemi Puntier 19:19
Is Sallie Manzanet-Daniels she is a judge in the Appellate Division in New York. And one our best advice is to just go for what you want and not be afraid to be unapologetic about your dreams, to be smart and to never give up. And that’s what she does every day. And that’s what she did for me when I met her so many years back and I haven’t stopped dreaming ever since then.
Chad Franzen 19:41
Great. Hey, great. It was really great to talk to you today. No, I mean, I really appreciate your time. Yes,
Noemi Puntier 19:46
thank you, Chad.
Chad Franzen 19:47
Thank you so long, everybody.
Outro 19:51
You’ve been listening to The Guts and Glory Show with Luis Scott. If you enjoyed the show, be sure to share. For more information on In this episode, please see the show notes at www.GutsandGloryshow.com And join us next time as we talk to another leader in business that had the guts to overcome all odds for the glory of success.
