meet bruna
Bruna Estrada Fortanelli brings Big Dan Law clients a rare combination of immigration-law experience, bilingual advocacy, and deep commitment to immigrant communities. Her work is grounded in the belief that every client deserves dignity, clear guidance, and a legal strategy built around their real-life goals.
Bruna has represented both detained and non-detained clients in removal proceedings before Immigration Court, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and immigration supervision matters. Her experience includes asylum, withholding of removal, Convention Against Torture protection, cancellation of removal, waivers, U-Visas, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, adjustment of status, custody redetermination, stays of removal, family-based petitions, employment authorization, and cases involving criminal-arrest or conviction issues in immigration court.
What sets Bruna apart is not only the range of cases she has handled, but the way she handles them. She has developed case strategy, prepared client declarations and testimony, drafted legal briefs and motions, requested expert evaluations, and helped clients understand changing immigration laws and policies. Her approach is organized, detail-oriented, trauma-informed, and focused on protecting human dignity while helping clients make informed decisions.
Bruna is fully biliterate in English and Spanish, with experience presenting in Spanish, interpreting, translating legal and professional documents, and conducting bilingual community outreach and education. For immigrant families, that matters. Clients should be able to tell their story, understand their options, and participate in their case without feeling lost in legal language.
Her background also includes training and mentoring law students, fellows, advocates, and attorneys, as well as delivering immigration-law and community-education presentations. Before practicing immigration law, Bruna worked in education and community service in the Rio Grande Valley, including bilingual outreach to students and parents. That history gives her a practical, people-centered perspective when helping families facing complicated immigration issues.
At Big Dan Law, Bruna strengthens the firm’s immigration practice with experience, compassion, and strategic judgment. Whether a client needs help understanding removal proceedings, immigration options, family-based matters, humanitarian relief, or the next step after receiving paperwork from immigration authorities, Bruna helps clients slow down, get informed, and make smart legal choices.
areas of specialty
Deportation and Removal Defense
Bruna Estrada Fortanelli has substantial experience representing individuals in removal proceedings before the Immigration Courts, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and immigration supervision authorities. Her work includes representing both detained and non-detained clients, evaluating removability issues, preparing defensive applications for relief, developing case strategy, drafting motions and legal briefs, and preparing clients for testimony. She approaches removal defense with careful attention to the client’s immigration history, family circumstances, criminal-history concerns, eligibility for relief, and long-term goals.
Humanitarian Immigration Relief
Bruna’s immigration practice includes experience with humanitarian forms of relief for individuals and families facing persecution, violence, trauma, or other serious hardship. Her work has included asylum, withholding of removal, protection under the Convention Against Torture, U-Visas, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, domestic-violence-related waivers, and related forms of immigration protection. She brings a trauma-informed and dignity-centered approach to these matters, helping clients present their histories clearly, carefully, and compassionately while building legally supported applications.
Family Based and Status Related Immigration Matters
Bruna also assists with family-based and status-related immigration matters, including adjustment of status, family-based petitions, employment authorization, custody redetermination, stays of removal, and related immigration planning. Her experience allows her to evaluate how different immigration processes may interact with each other, especially when a client has prior immigration history, pending court proceedings, or other complicating factors. She focuses on helping clients understand their options, prepare accurate documentation, and make informed decisions before taking legal action.
