John Vazquez leads the Immigration Law Section of Protogyrou Law. The son of Cuban immigrants, he grew up primarily in Norfolk, Virginia. He earned his undergraduate degree from the Virginia Military Institute and served twenty-five years in the U.S. Marine Corps. After retiring from active duty, John attended the University of Miami School of Law where he earned his Juris Doctor with an area of focus in immigration, asylum, and citizenship law.
As a Marine, John conducted numerous worldwide deployments including multiple tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. He has extensive experience as an advisor, trainer, and instructor with foreign partners from across the globe to include Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Brazil, Iraq, Afghanistan, South Korea, and the Philippines.
While in law school, John served as a Legal Intern with the Miami Law Immigration Clinic where he worked on immigration cases for clients from Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Haiti, and Ghana. Additionally, he provided support for immigrant legal services as a volunteer with Americans for Immigrant Justice and Catholic Legal Services. John was a Fellow for the Professional Responsibility and Ethics Program, a member of the Immigration Student Law Association, the Hispanic Law Students Association, and the Cuban-American Bar Association.
Education
- BA, Virginia Military Institute, with Distinction
- JD, University of Miami School of Law
Service
- Lieutenant Colonel (retired), U.S. Marine Corps
- Infantry Officer; Latin America Foreign Area Officer
Bar Admission
Professional Associations
- American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
- Virginia Beach Bar Association
- Norfolk-Portsmouth Bar Association
- Cuban-American Bar Association (CABA)
