Attorneys
Claudia Canizares, Esq.
FOUNDING PARTNER
Claudia Canizares is originally from Habana, Cuba.
In 2009, she graduated Summa Cum Laude with Bachelors Degree in Criminal Justice with a Minor in Psychology from Florida International University.
In 2012, she graduated cum laude from Nova Southeastern University where she obtained her Juris Doctor degree. She was admitted to the Florida Bar on September 19, 2012.
She started her law career doing Personal Injury. She then transitioned into Immigration Law which has been her main area of practice since the beginning of 2013. Since then, Mrs. Canizares has completed thousands of cases before USCIS and the immigration court.
Ms. Canizares’s case experience includes asylum applications, adjustment of status applications, waivers for unlawful presence, fraud, criminal issues, smuggling and others, cancellation of removal, special visas for crime victims, victims of domestic violence and juveniles, humanitarian deferred actions, TPS applications, Parole in Place and others.
She has appeared in USCIS interviews and court hearings in various places of the United States including but not limited to: Florida, California, Georgia, New York, New Jersey, Texas, Missouri, Nevada, Arizona, Minnesota, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Louisiana.
Mrs. Canizares came to the US at the age of 16 and endured detention at the southern border followed by a lengthy immigration removal proceeding. Thankfully, Mrs. Canizares was granted lawful permanent residency. During her early years in the United States, she did not imagine that she would become an immigration attorney. However, it is her personal experience that has allowed her to empathize with the thousands of people she has met and serviced during her last decade as immigration attorney.
Zulimary V. Maymi-Serrano, Esq.
MANAGING SENIOR ATTORNEY
Zulimary V. Maymi-Serrano, Esq., is an attorney with over 15 years of experience in various fields of law including removal defense immigration, labor & employment, contracts and collective bargaining.
Mrs. Maymi-Serrano graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2003 obtaining her bachelor’s degree in Public Communication from the University of Puerto Rico and graduated Cum Laude in 2007 from the University of Puerto Rico School of Law.
Mrs. Maymi-Serrano has successfully represented clients nationwide before the Immigration Court, Asylum Offices, and USCIS. Mrs. Maymi-Serrano’s case experience includes removal defense, asylum defense, family-based petitions, adjustment of status, waivers, cancellation of removal, special visas for crime victims (U Visas), victims of domestic violence (VAWA), humanitarian deferred actions and humanitarian paroles, TPS, parole in place, and consular process.
During her career, Mrs. Maymi-Serrano has also represented employers and companies before the National Labor Relations Board and the Department of Labor. She has experience in wages and hours, employment litigation, and as lead negotiator in collective bargaining agreements.
Mrs. Maymi-Serrano was born and raised in Puerto Rico. In 2019, she moved to Miami to pursue her passion for Immigration Law, and she joined our Firm in 2021. She is a passionate and empathic advocate that provides effective representation to our clients throughout their immigration processes.
Angelica Hernandez, Esq.
SUPERVISING SENIOR ATTORNEY
Angelica Hernandez, Esq. is an attorney with over eight years of experience. She was born and raised in Ponce, Puerto Rico, and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico. She later obtained her Juris Doctor also from the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Law. In February 2015 she was admitted to the Law Practice by the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico. During the first two years of her career as an attorney she dedicated her practice to Family, Criminal, and Civil law in Puerto Rico. In 2017 she moved to Miami and started practicing Immigration Law which she continues to practice.
As an immigration attorney she has successfully represented individuals and families from different nationalities before the Immigration Court, USCIS, and ICE in a variety of cases such as asylum, withholding of removals, cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, family petitions, naturalizations, waivers, temporary protected status (TPS), detained custody redetermination requests, stays of removals, and more.
Alejandro Machin, Esq.
SENIOR ASSOCIATE
Alejandro Machin is an attorney with the Canizares Law Group practicing in the area of Immigration Law.
Alejandro graduated from Suffolk University Law School in 2019. He also graduated as an attorney from the University of Havana School of Law in 2010. Mr. Machin is licensed to practice law in Massachusetts and has been a member of the Massachusetts Bar Association since 2020.
Born and raised in Havana, Cuba, until later in 2014, he made the decision to move to the United States. Upon arriving in Miami, he worked as a legal assistant at a Construction Company. Alejandro wanted to continue being an attorney, so he moved to Boston to pursue a legal career in the United States. After graduating in 2019, he practiced Real Estate Conveyancing Law in Boston, Massachusetts, until he relocated to Miami in 2023.
Alejandro has a passion for helping others. He worked as an intern at Greater Boston Legal Services, placing homeless women with children into shelter. During his last year as a law student in Boston, he became part of the school’s immigration clinic helping clients with their asylum applications. Ultimately, because of his own personal experience with the United States Immigration System, Mr. Machin decided to focus on a different type of law in order to help others to obtain legal status in the country.
Jaime A. Babilonia, Esq.
Associate Attorney
Born in Puerto Rico, attorney Jaime A. Babilonia is bilingual. He obtained his Master of Laws from the University of Miami School of Law (2025), where he successfully completed immigration law courses offered by Professors Ira Kurzban, David Thronson and Rebecca Sanchez Roig. He obtained his Juris Doctor from the Inter-American University School of Law in San Juan, PR (2019), and obtained his bachelor’s degree from the University of the Sacred Heart in San Juan, PR (2014). During his law school years, he participated in several student organizations such as the Federal Bar Association (FBA) and the National Law Students Association (ANED). In 2018 Attorney Jaime traveled to Colombia to participate in several conferences offered by the University of Medellin Faculty of Law. In September 2021 he passed the bar exam and was admitted to the legal profession.
Currently he works as an immigration attorney, representing clients before the immigration court (EOIR), the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and before the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). His experience has helped him obtain relief for his clients, avoiding deportation and successfully defending asylum claims. He has helped eligible clients obtain American citizenship.
Miguel Mora, Esq.
Associate Attorney
Miguel A. Mora – currently practices with the law offices of Canizares Law Group. He focuses on removal defense in different jurisdictions of the United States. Miguel is former Supervisor Attorney of Catholic Legal Services Miami conducting a nationwide portfolio DOJ-EOIR Legal Access Programs (LAP). Miguel graduated from Tulane School of Law (2000) Catholic University (1994). Miguel is admitted to the Louisiana Bar Association (2001) and Venezuela Bar Association (1995) – He is experienced in cross-border transactional matters and dispute resolution from his 20 years of practice in the LATAM region with US Legal teams in energy and shipping practice.
Jennifer E. Acosta Calderon, Esq.
Associate Attorney
Attorney Jennifer was born in Puerto Rico and is proficient in both English and Spanish. She obtained her bachelor’s degree from the University of Puerto Rico (2013) and a master’s degree from the Metropolitan University in Puerto Rico (2016). In 2021, she obtained her Juris Doctor from Barry University School of Law in Orlando, Florida.
With a background in business administration, her initial goal in law school was to focus on business law. However, due to the complicated immigration climate, she decided to learn more about immigration law while pursuing her degree. This resulted in a shift to her focus where her passion for helping those in need pointed her to this path. During her last two semesters in law school, she became a part of the school’s immigration clinic helping clients with their asylum applications before the Immigration Court and petitions before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
After graduating, Jennnifer continued to work with the immigration community gaining valuable experience by representing clients nationwide before the immigration court (EOIR), the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Through her work she has gained relief for her clients, successfully defending them in asylum claims, cancellation of removal, family-based petitions, custody redetermination hearings, and more.
Attorney Jennifer is a licensed attorney in Florida. Currently a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the AILA Central Florida Chapter.
Yoelyn Sanabria, Esq.
Associate Attorney
Yoelyn Sanabria was born and raised in Cuba, where she practiced as an attorney for about 3 years after obtaining her first law degree from the University of Havana. After moving to the United States, Yoelyn obtained her Master’s Degree (L.L.M.) in Comparative Law from the Levin College of Law of the University of Florida. While at law school, she completed an internship with the school’s immigration clinic and helped provide assistance to low-income immigrants with affirmative humanitarian immigration petitions, specifically U visas and Vawa.
Yoelyn is admitted to the Louisiana State Bar and has focused her practice in Immigration Law. As an immigrant herself, she is a strong advocate for immigrants’ rights and empathizes with those looking for an honest answer and representation in their immigration cases. Yoelyn is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
Sabellys Silvestrini Rodriguez
Associate Attorney
Sabellys Silvestrini was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico.
She graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Forensic Psychology from the University of Puerto Rico. In 2015, she earned her Juris Doctor degree from the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Law.
In 2016, Ms. Silvestrini relocated to Florida, where she discovered her passion for immigration law. She began her legal career assisting immigrants in matters including asylum applications, family-based petitions, U visas, VAWA petitions, appeals before the Board of Immigration Appeals, Cuban Adjustment Act applications, and removal defense before the Immigration Court.
She has represented clients in USCIS interviews, immigration court hearings, and proceedings before ICE in multiple jurisdictions across the United States.
Ms. Silvestrini’s personal experience of leaving her home country in search of new opportunities has allowed her to connect deeply with her clients and understand the challenges they face. She is committed to guiding and protecting them during moments of vulnerability, ensuring they have strong legal representation as they pursue a better future in the United States.
Shelby Woolston, Esq.
Associate Attorney
Shelby was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. She left home to attend high school at an international boarding school in Rome, Georgia, where she developed a sincere appreciation for different perspectives and experiences, and understood the invaluable impact of diverse cultures in the United States.
In 2018, Shelby moved to Uruguay and then Peru while pursuing her Bachelor’s Degree in International and Global Studies. There she learned Spanish, and acquired worldly experiences that would ultimately form the foundation for her career in immigration.
Upon returning to the United States after two years living in South America, Shelby interned at a non-profit immigration law firm in her hometown in Alaska, where she found her passion in immigration law during her last semester of college.
Seeking a career in removal defense, Shelby moved to Miami in 2020 to attend law school at Florida International University College of Law. She has worked at Canizares Law Group for five years, including all through law school. Shelby is deeply passionate about the work we do and takes great pride in ensuring our clients receive the best possible representation in their immigration cases.
Rodney R. Hernández Esq., MBA
Associate Attorney
Rodney R. Hernández is a seasoned immigration attorney with over 15 years of experience representing individuals, families, and businesses in complex immigration matters across the United States. As a bilingual attorney, Mr. Hernández provides strategic, results-driven legal representation tailored to the unique needs of each client.
Mr. Hernández earned his Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico. He also holds dual Master of Business Administration degrees in Accounting and Finance, also cum laude, from Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. His academic background uniquely positions him to integrate legal expertise with strong financial and business insight, particularly in employment-based and investment immigration matters.
Throughout his career, Mr. Hernández has represented clients in a wide range of immigration cases, including asylum applications, removal defense, family-based petitions, naturalization, and employment-based visas such as H-1B, L-1, E-2, and EB categories. He has also handled appeals before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and has extensive experience preparing clients for USCIS interviews and immigration court proceedings.
Mr. Hernández has held leadership roles as a Senior Immigration Attorney, Partner, and Supervising Attorney, managing multi-office operations and overseeing teams of attorneys, paralegals, and administrative staff. His experience includes supervising complex case portfolios, developing legal strategies, and ensuring high-quality representation across all stages of immigration proceedings.
Mr. Hernández is admitted to practice law in Puerto Rico and is a registered attorney with the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). He is committed to providing compassionate, knowledgeable, and effective legal representation, helping clients navigate the immigration system with confidence and clarity.