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Featured Guest:
Arielle Barreto, LLM Corporate Lawyer Published Date: February 9, 2026 In this engaging conversation, Arielle Barreto shares her journey from Brazil to becoming a successful corporate lawyer in the U.S. She discusses her unique approach to problem-solving, her experiences in various legal fields, and the importance of commitment and discipline in achieving success. Arielle also offers valuable advice for aspiring lawyers and provides insights into navigating an LLM program, emphasizing the importance of an open mind and a willingness to learn. Listen to/watch the full podcast recording, or read the transcript below: |
Full Interview with Arielle Barreto:
"Life is hard. Push it and you will get through it. Keep going and things will happen."
- Arielle Barreto (Wisdom for Wannabes episode 30, 24:00)
Great quotes from the interview:
(More great quotes throughout the transcript in purple below.)
- "I'm an Uber mom."
- "There is always a way."
- "I'm willing to do the work."
(More great quotes throughout the transcript in purple below.)
Arielle Barreto, Lawyer
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Key Takeaways:
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Interview Transcript:
Jackie Morreale (00:00)
Hello and welcome to Wisdom for Wannabes, a podcast that seeks to discover wise words in business, beauty, and betterment. I’m the host, Jackie Morreale. Today’s focus is on the topic of “business”, by way of the field of law.
I want to provide a warm welcome to today’s guest, and my friend, Arielle Barreto. Welcome, Arielle! So good to see your face.
Arielle Barreto (00:25)
Thanks for having me. I'm very happy to be here.
Jackie Morreale (00:47)
Thank you for being here. As a brief introduction to a very accomplished person:
Arielle Barreto is a multilingual legal professional with over a decade of international experience across corporate law, compliance, and litigation management. She most recently served as Associate at a U.S.-based boutique law firm with operations in Latin America where she advises on corporate governance, contract management, labor and employment law, and e-commerce regulatory matters.
I hope I got all that right, by the way!
Arielle Barreto (00:59)
You're very good at putting light on people, but I feel so special. And accomplished.
Jackie Morreale (01:03)
I'm so glad. So well deserved.
Known for her ability to function as “in-house counsel from the outside,” Arielle excels at aligning legal strategies with business objectives across diverse jurisdictions.
With strong cross-border legal insight and fluency in Portuguese, Spanish, and English, Arielle brings a global mindset to every client and case she supports. Arielle holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in the U.S. from the University of Miami School of Law, and a Law degree from the Universidade Federal de Uberlândia in Brazil.
Did I get that one right?
Arielle Barreto (01:37)
Yes, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia.
Jackie Morreale (01:40)
She's also a published author on topics such as Brazilian tax reform, bioethics, and international arms regulations. Find out more about Arielle Barreto, LLM, at floridabar.org under foreign consultants.
Whew, you know so much about stuff that I know nothing about! Arielle, I wanna be more like you.
Arielle Barreto (02:00)
No, I wanna be like you.
It's true. I have known Jackie for years, and she's so good at putting light on people, and extracting the best from what they have to offer. I feel so accomplished. I'm like, my God, did I do all of that?
Jackie Morreale (02:15)
You really did. You're an amazing human being.
Let's start the interview off with the basics. I know that Arielle Barreto is your name, but you actually have this wonderfully long name. So, your full name, where you're from, and where you live and work now?
Arielle Barreto (02:19)
I do have a princess name. My mom decided that she needed me to have that long name to make all my documents complicated.
My full name is Arielle Zardo Bernardes Barreto, and I'm from Catalão, Goiás. That is a very tiny city in the middle of Brazil. I have been living in the US for a couple of years, and I'm currently in Boca Raton, Florida. I'm a lawyer. That's the easiest explanation.
If you ask my husband, he'll say my passion is looking for trouble. But I prefer to see it as puzzle-solving. It's about analyzing and dissecting situations, behaviors, and probabilities, and ultimately providing you with a solution. I do that in my profession, but I also do that in my life. I do have that tendency to try to understand every single thing to see how things can be done in a better way.
So, he will say trouble, I will say puzzle solving.
Jackie Morreale (03:23)
Your entire education is in the field of law, right? So, after you have all those years of education and practicing law, I would imagine it's hard to just turn it off.
Arielle Barreto (03:31)
I think it's also part of my personality. That's something that I learned later. But I think it's a combination of who I actually am and how this is useful on the field that I decided to go for.
Jackie Morreale (03:41)
How many years have you been doing it?
Arielle Barreto (03:46)
Over 15 years. I've been through all the ups and downs and twists and turns, changed directions, went through all the crisis, when you want to give up of everything and start doing something new or decide to thank God I came to this path. I'm very grateful for the entire journey.
Jackie Morreale (04:03)
What is your favorite part of your role?
Arielle Barreto (04:07)
Favorite part of my role? I like to think outside of the box. I'm not that preconception of a lawyer that is going to go to the lawsuit that's the first resort and going to want the fight. I don't want the fight.
I want to think how I can solve the situation, and how can I fix the situation in the most efficient way. That might not be a lawsuit. That might be a way to get things done without having to go in that direction.
Jackie Morreale (04:30)
Problem solver. We're starting to get deep, but I'm going to pull it back. Let's rein it back and get super light. Super easy.
What is your favorite food?
Arielle Barreto (04:33)
That is the easiest question I think you're going to ask me today. So instant noodles, tomato flavor. I'm going to tell you, it's a specific one, because in Brazil, I'm telling you, I'm a foodie, you know I'm a foodie, I'm a picky eater.
Jackie Morreale (04:46)
No. I don't accept this answer. I know you're a foodie, so instant anything does not work.
Arielle Barreto (04:56)
I'm telling you, I'm a picky eater, but I'm a foodie. I love to go to nice restaurants, and I also love the Costco hot dog. But these instant noodles...
There's a Brazilian version of a kid's popular comic book called Turma da Mônica. I can eat that thing every single day. All my friends know about it. When I'm having a bad day, I start getting text messages saying, ‘So, you're having noodles today.’ I'm like, ‘For sure.’ That's how I'm going to end my day with my cup of noodles sitting on my bed, drinking my Coke and watching TV.
Jackie Morreale (05:26)
Well, now I know what to get you for your next birthday. I'll just get you a bunch of noodles da Monica, right?
Arielle Barreto (05:28)
Yes, the Brazilian one. Thank God they have it here. You can go to the Brazilian supermarket, and I always buy them all. I have friends who go to the supermarket and say, ‘You have already come, right?’ Because there are no noodles left.
Jackie Morreale (05:42)
Because there's no more. I can't believe it from such a foodie! Okay, I accept your answer.
What is your favorite book?
Arielle Barreto (05:51)
I was a reader before, and then I had kids, and things changed.
I do have to read some of those at night, and I'm like, ‘Do I want to do this?’ Right now, I read a lot for work. I spend most of my day reading things. So, at night I just want to watch TV.
I do have a special book. When I moved here, I was still working on my English. One of the things that I did in the afternoon was go to Barnes and Noble, choose a random book, and read a paragraph. I would read different books. I would do biography books and different styles of books, different styles of reading. This is so I could get used to different types of English and sentence structures.
There was this book that I opened one day, and I read the first chapter. I loved the book. The next day, I read the second chapter and the third day. So after a week, I read the entire book, and then I bought it. After this week, I need to have it because I read the entire book here. It's called, The Last Day of My Life, by Jim Moret.
It's an analysis of a guy who knows that he's going to die and what he was going to do on his last day and what was important to focus on. If he wants to make things right or if he wants just to enjoy what he already knew was important to him. At the time, I was here by myself with my husband, but not with my family, learning a new language and getting used to a new country, and everything made so much sense.
Jackie Morreale (07:09)
Favorite place?
Arielle Barreto (07:12)
I'm going with Dorothy on this one. Dorothy, Dorothy got it right, there is no place like home. I do love to travel, I do love hotels, but I love my house. I love spending time at my house; I adore my room and being secluded there, and I wouldn't change it for anything else.
Jackie Morreale (07:27)
Favorite School? Or school subject?
Arielle Barreto (07:30)
I'm re-living middle school. My older one just started middle school and I'm currently enrolled in middle school too. I thought those years were done, but they're not.
I hate homework now more than ever.
I think when I was a kid, I hated homework, but right now I do hate homework. After all this experience, I can say with certainty that I'm a math person.
Math is my thing. I know what I'm doing there. He asked me for help, and I'm like, this is so easy. I know this one. Just move this here, move this there. This is here; this is there. This is the easier way to go. I'm having fun with math again.
Jackie Morreale (08:02)
What is your favorite sport?
Arielle Barreto (08:04)
This is the hard one. Food is the easy one, sport is the hard one.
I do love them all. We are a tennis family. My boys play tennis. My TV is going to be on if there's a tennis game. We are watching that thing from Thursday to Sunday, games in the morning, the afternoon, evening. We are watching them all.
I was a swimmer when I was younger. I swim.
I do love the Olympic Games. When the Olympic Games are on, I'm watching gymnastics and diving. I'm disagreeing with the scores at the end. I'm like, no, that movement was perfect. I have my own opinions about it. We watch basketball, we watch volleyball.
I'm Brazilian, right? I do love soccer. Soccer is in my blood, but I'm also American. So, I cannot imagine a Sunday without football. I love them all.
To be honest, there's one sport I do hate and it's baseball. You're not going to see me sitting for a baseball game. I even prohibited the boys from trying it. I let them try sports until they know what they like. They tried hockey. We watch hockey. They play golf.
(Continued below)
Hello and welcome to Wisdom for Wannabes, a podcast that seeks to discover wise words in business, beauty, and betterment. I’m the host, Jackie Morreale. Today’s focus is on the topic of “business”, by way of the field of law.
I want to provide a warm welcome to today’s guest, and my friend, Arielle Barreto. Welcome, Arielle! So good to see your face.
Arielle Barreto (00:25)
Thanks for having me. I'm very happy to be here.
Jackie Morreale (00:47)
Thank you for being here. As a brief introduction to a very accomplished person:
Arielle Barreto is a multilingual legal professional with over a decade of international experience across corporate law, compliance, and litigation management. She most recently served as Associate at a U.S.-based boutique law firm with operations in Latin America where she advises on corporate governance, contract management, labor and employment law, and e-commerce regulatory matters.
I hope I got all that right, by the way!
Arielle Barreto (00:59)
You're very good at putting light on people, but I feel so special. And accomplished.
Jackie Morreale (01:03)
I'm so glad. So well deserved.
Known for her ability to function as “in-house counsel from the outside,” Arielle excels at aligning legal strategies with business objectives across diverse jurisdictions.
With strong cross-border legal insight and fluency in Portuguese, Spanish, and English, Arielle brings a global mindset to every client and case she supports. Arielle holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in the U.S. from the University of Miami School of Law, and a Law degree from the Universidade Federal de Uberlândia in Brazil.
Did I get that one right?
Arielle Barreto (01:37)
Yes, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia.
Jackie Morreale (01:40)
She's also a published author on topics such as Brazilian tax reform, bioethics, and international arms regulations. Find out more about Arielle Barreto, LLM, at floridabar.org under foreign consultants.
Whew, you know so much about stuff that I know nothing about! Arielle, I wanna be more like you.
Arielle Barreto (02:00)
No, I wanna be like you.
It's true. I have known Jackie for years, and she's so good at putting light on people, and extracting the best from what they have to offer. I feel so accomplished. I'm like, my God, did I do all of that?
Jackie Morreale (02:15)
You really did. You're an amazing human being.
Let's start the interview off with the basics. I know that Arielle Barreto is your name, but you actually have this wonderfully long name. So, your full name, where you're from, and where you live and work now?
Arielle Barreto (02:19)
I do have a princess name. My mom decided that she needed me to have that long name to make all my documents complicated.
My full name is Arielle Zardo Bernardes Barreto, and I'm from Catalão, Goiás. That is a very tiny city in the middle of Brazil. I have been living in the US for a couple of years, and I'm currently in Boca Raton, Florida. I'm a lawyer. That's the easiest explanation.
If you ask my husband, he'll say my passion is looking for trouble. But I prefer to see it as puzzle-solving. It's about analyzing and dissecting situations, behaviors, and probabilities, and ultimately providing you with a solution. I do that in my profession, but I also do that in my life. I do have that tendency to try to understand every single thing to see how things can be done in a better way.
So, he will say trouble, I will say puzzle solving.
Jackie Morreale (03:23)
Your entire education is in the field of law, right? So, after you have all those years of education and practicing law, I would imagine it's hard to just turn it off.
Arielle Barreto (03:31)
I think it's also part of my personality. That's something that I learned later. But I think it's a combination of who I actually am and how this is useful on the field that I decided to go for.
Jackie Morreale (03:41)
How many years have you been doing it?
Arielle Barreto (03:46)
Over 15 years. I've been through all the ups and downs and twists and turns, changed directions, went through all the crisis, when you want to give up of everything and start doing something new or decide to thank God I came to this path. I'm very grateful for the entire journey.
Jackie Morreale (04:03)
What is your favorite part of your role?
Arielle Barreto (04:07)
Favorite part of my role? I like to think outside of the box. I'm not that preconception of a lawyer that is going to go to the lawsuit that's the first resort and going to want the fight. I don't want the fight.
I want to think how I can solve the situation, and how can I fix the situation in the most efficient way. That might not be a lawsuit. That might be a way to get things done without having to go in that direction.
Jackie Morreale (04:30)
Problem solver. We're starting to get deep, but I'm going to pull it back. Let's rein it back and get super light. Super easy.
What is your favorite food?
Arielle Barreto (04:33)
That is the easiest question I think you're going to ask me today. So instant noodles, tomato flavor. I'm going to tell you, it's a specific one, because in Brazil, I'm telling you, I'm a foodie, you know I'm a foodie, I'm a picky eater.
Jackie Morreale (04:46)
No. I don't accept this answer. I know you're a foodie, so instant anything does not work.
Arielle Barreto (04:56)
I'm telling you, I'm a picky eater, but I'm a foodie. I love to go to nice restaurants, and I also love the Costco hot dog. But these instant noodles...
There's a Brazilian version of a kid's popular comic book called Turma da Mônica. I can eat that thing every single day. All my friends know about it. When I'm having a bad day, I start getting text messages saying, ‘So, you're having noodles today.’ I'm like, ‘For sure.’ That's how I'm going to end my day with my cup of noodles sitting on my bed, drinking my Coke and watching TV.
Jackie Morreale (05:26)
Well, now I know what to get you for your next birthday. I'll just get you a bunch of noodles da Monica, right?
Arielle Barreto (05:28)
Yes, the Brazilian one. Thank God they have it here. You can go to the Brazilian supermarket, and I always buy them all. I have friends who go to the supermarket and say, ‘You have already come, right?’ Because there are no noodles left.
Jackie Morreale (05:42)
Because there's no more. I can't believe it from such a foodie! Okay, I accept your answer.
What is your favorite book?
Arielle Barreto (05:51)
I was a reader before, and then I had kids, and things changed.
I do have to read some of those at night, and I'm like, ‘Do I want to do this?’ Right now, I read a lot for work. I spend most of my day reading things. So, at night I just want to watch TV.
I do have a special book. When I moved here, I was still working on my English. One of the things that I did in the afternoon was go to Barnes and Noble, choose a random book, and read a paragraph. I would read different books. I would do biography books and different styles of books, different styles of reading. This is so I could get used to different types of English and sentence structures.
There was this book that I opened one day, and I read the first chapter. I loved the book. The next day, I read the second chapter and the third day. So after a week, I read the entire book, and then I bought it. After this week, I need to have it because I read the entire book here. It's called, The Last Day of My Life, by Jim Moret.
It's an analysis of a guy who knows that he's going to die and what he was going to do on his last day and what was important to focus on. If he wants to make things right or if he wants just to enjoy what he already knew was important to him. At the time, I was here by myself with my husband, but not with my family, learning a new language and getting used to a new country, and everything made so much sense.
Jackie Morreale (07:09)
Favorite place?
Arielle Barreto (07:12)
I'm going with Dorothy on this one. Dorothy, Dorothy got it right, there is no place like home. I do love to travel, I do love hotels, but I love my house. I love spending time at my house; I adore my room and being secluded there, and I wouldn't change it for anything else.
Jackie Morreale (07:27)
Favorite School? Or school subject?
Arielle Barreto (07:30)
I'm re-living middle school. My older one just started middle school and I'm currently enrolled in middle school too. I thought those years were done, but they're not.
I hate homework now more than ever.
I think when I was a kid, I hated homework, but right now I do hate homework. After all this experience, I can say with certainty that I'm a math person.
Math is my thing. I know what I'm doing there. He asked me for help, and I'm like, this is so easy. I know this one. Just move this here, move this there. This is here; this is there. This is the easier way to go. I'm having fun with math again.
Jackie Morreale (08:02)
What is your favorite sport?
Arielle Barreto (08:04)
This is the hard one. Food is the easy one, sport is the hard one.
I do love them all. We are a tennis family. My boys play tennis. My TV is going to be on if there's a tennis game. We are watching that thing from Thursday to Sunday, games in the morning, the afternoon, evening. We are watching them all.
I was a swimmer when I was younger. I swim.
I do love the Olympic Games. When the Olympic Games are on, I'm watching gymnastics and diving. I'm disagreeing with the scores at the end. I'm like, no, that movement was perfect. I have my own opinions about it. We watch basketball, we watch volleyball.
I'm Brazilian, right? I do love soccer. Soccer is in my blood, but I'm also American. So, I cannot imagine a Sunday without football. I love them all.
To be honest, there's one sport I do hate and it's baseball. You're not going to see me sitting for a baseball game. I even prohibited the boys from trying it. I let them try sports until they know what they like. They tried hockey. We watch hockey. They play golf.
(Continued below)
Arielle Barreto with her family members at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, Florida.
(Continued)
Jackie Morreale (09:03)
Let’s take it back to law. Most interesting type of law?
Arielle Barreto (09:07)
I have two answers for that one.
If you think of personal connections, I'll say family law. In family law, you can sit with a client that comes to you, telling you that he needs help with a divorce because they're having the worst time of their life, but they're still wearing their wedding band. And they're going to tell you all the private and personal details and stories. After an hour, you're a lawyer, you're a friend, you're a therapist. For the personal connections, family law will be very interesting.
But for the intellectual part, I do think it's contracts. I love the mental exercise. Like using the words strategically to get to where you need things to go, or in negotiations, reading the opposite side and trying to figure out what they want, why they want it, and how you can get what you want, and how to make them accept what you want.
I think it's more my passion to solve problems. That will be the one for me.
Jackie Morreale (10:00)
Thing to do when you’re not practicing law?
Arielle Barreto (10:03)
I'm an Uber mom. That's basically where I spend most of my time. It's driving my kids to one place or another, sitting in parking lots.
You saw me already in parking lots. We already have that connection in parking lots.
Having my computer on, reading emails, and sometimes even doing calls while they're jumping from swimming to Kumon to golf, and I'm there, sitting, and driving.
It's not fun. I get a lot of back pain. I complain a lot on a daily basis at home.
But I also think it's an opportunity to be with the boys, and they can tell me what's going on in their lives. Very informal environment. What happened at school, what a friend did, what a friend didn't do, why he didn't like something, what they ate.
So, it's not good, but it's good.
Jackie Morreale (10:47)
I know that you’re an incredible lawyer, but you’re also an incredible mom. I know that being there and having that family experience every day is incredibly important.
Quote for life, if you have one?
Arielle Barreto (10:59)
I thought a bit on that one. I have quotes that I think are inspirational, usually from people I admire. There is a Brazilian driver, a fun driver, Ayrton Senna. My husband is a fan. My older son is a fan. We hear a lot about him at the house. There are some sports coaches from Brazil, usually related to work and discipline and how things need to be done.
Always depends on what's happening in your life at that time and what makes sense at the time.
But I do have one that survives throughout the year. Every time I remember that one, I'm like, yeah, that makes sense. It's from a Brazilian author, Paulo Coelho.
He says, ‘Life is too short to be small.’ I think I'm a very intense person. That comes with the way I like to live my life. Go big and all the way, because life is short.
Jackie Morreale (11:47)
I totally agree. That's you! You just exude it; you have a big personality. Everything you do is big. Go big or go home, like they say in Texas. So, life is too short to go small. Love it. So many levels.
Arielle Barreto (11:49)
Yes. It fits well. That's the one. Life is too short to be small.
Jackie Morreale (12:05)
Let's talk about law. What made you want to get into the field of law?
Arielle Barreto (12:09)
I was going to be a doctor. I was preparing myself to be a doctor.
After 15 seasons of ER, I could see myself saving lives with George Clooney in a random hospital anywhere. That's why I was going for it.
In Brazil, it's a little different than here. You have to choose the field you're going to when you finish high school.
We have this big test. You need to apply for the test at the university you want to attend, and you need to select the field you're going to.
I was 100% sure I was doing medical. I'm going there.
One day in my last year of high school, I was sitting in a classroom, which was a physics classroom with this teacher. We had no connection. He was not special to me. I don't think I was special to him. I was not the best student in that subject.
I was always a good student, but physics, I was OK.
There was nothing special in that relationship, but for some reason, he decided to come to me and say, ‘Hey, Ms. Barreto, what are you doing for your vestibular?' That is how the test is called. I said, 'I'm going to be a doctor.' He's like, 'What? No, you're not. You're going in the wrong direction. You're a lawyer. You should go for legal.' I'm like, 'Why do you think you can tell me I'm going in the wrong direction?' But that comment stuck with me.
For the following weeks, I started thinking and rethinking.
What did it mean by that? A lawyer.
What do I have that a lawyer needs? I started analyzing.
I had someone I worked with at that time. My parents hired one of those consultants to help you decide what you want to do with your life. I was 17. I had no idea what I wanted to do for my life. I started talking to her and doing some personality exercises and learning more about the legal field. When you do the application, in Brazil at that time, we went to the post office. I went to the post office with my application. There was still a blank on the field.
When I got there, I'm like, 'I'm going with legal.' Then I chose law school.
I submitted my application. I took the test and I passed on my first try.
I had to change my TV. I started watching Law & Order and Suits, and I have to change a little bit of what I was doing.
Jackie Morreale (14:11)
I think you’d be an amazing doctor as well. I think you just help people in a different way.
Arielle Barreto (14:18)
That's the thing. I think in every single thing you do, you need to make sure you're happy doing it. Even for legal.
I'm not the courtroom lawyer. That's not how I like to spend my time, with the formatted templates. I like to be involved in a more decision-making type of process.
In any area you choose to go, you can find what you're good at and use that in that direction.
Jackie Morreale (14:40)
Your parents thought of hiring someone to do that kind of personality analysis. I think that your personality is so perfectly matched for what you're doing.
If you're going to do something that's easier in life that you could excel at quicker, maybe, help more people in the long run, I think you found it!
Arielle Barreto (14:57)
When you're 17, and that happens a lot because in Brazil everyone needs to choose at 16, 17, 18. Most people start studying something and they gave up midway and they need to change it. For example, my husband started with administration. Then he graduated in psychology. Then he did finance. People move around because they have to choose so early. Here you have those couple of years where you go kind of generic. I think that helps a bit.
It is common in Brazil when you're on those final years of high school to have someone to walk you through the process and explain to you what a lawyer does. Most of the time, you don't even know. You can go to law school and not be a lawyer. You can go in so many directions with that.
Jackie Morreale (15:33)
Did you know anyone growing up who was also a lawyer? That maybe you were able to emulate or look up to?
Arielle Barreto (15:40)
I do have an experience. I have a close friend. She's a childhood friend. We were born a month apart. We were neighbors. We did a bunch of things together while growing up. Her grandfather was very recognized in the field of law. He was a judge. He grew up in the profession. It was so funny, because when I started law school, the first book that they told me to buy was one of his books, because he has an entire collection of books.
The entire country studies civil law through his books. I'm like, ‘I know this, it's Grandpa!’ It was so familiar to me and they always treat me as family. He was someone that inspired me and I had as a guide of what to expect, but it was also like, ‘I'm reading Grandpa's books!’
He learned about it, he sent me the entire collections of books and signed my books.
He has one daughter that's still working in a high position in the legal field in Brazil.
They always are there to support me. I know I can count on them anytime I need.
Jackie Morreale (16:35)
Between Grandpa and the physics teacher in high school, we really have to thank them, for setting you on the right path. It’s true!
Arielle Barreto (16:43)
The random physics teacher would change my life with a small comment on a regular school day.
He was paying attention. Even though I didn't see him as an inspired or one of the popular ones, he was paying attention, and that showed how great a teacher he was.
Jackie Morreale (16:59)
Teachers are amazing for just being leaders and getting us on our way. \
Speaking of getting on our way, how did you get started as a lawyer?
Arielle Barreto (17:08)
I experienced a lot. I went to different areas of the field. I worked with a judge in criminal law. I worked with a prosecutor in family law. I worked with a boutique firm on civil cases.
When I came to the US, was when I started getting involved and getting in touch with this more business type of field, more related to the business decision, the transactions. That was something like the commercial side; that caught my attention.
I'm also an international lawyer, so eventually you're going to get dragged into immigration. I did that for a while and I can do that, but I would not love to do that. That's something that does not excite me a lot.
I have been around; I have experienced different areas. The plan was to go back to Brazil. I got here and I realized there is this whole new world that I could be exploring and that was it.
Jackie Morreale (18:01)
How did you transition from practicing various types of law in Brazil, from family law, commercial law, and international law, then to the US?
Arielle Barreto (18:11)
The decision to come here, I say to everyone, was based on lack of credibility.
Again, I started law school when I was 17. I graduated, was 21, almost 22. I was this young girl that just graduated from law school… That's what I felt. I felt people did not trust me.
I will say something and they were going to look at me and they were like, 'What do you know?'
I had those looks pretty often. The legal field as many other fields are predominantly male, especially the heavy names. Those big names that everyone recognizes.
That has a weight, people respect those names, even though sometimes they're not even the ones doing the work, but they are recognized names.
I was like, ‘What am I going to be doing here? How am I going to get clients to trust me and pay me so I'm moving forward in my profession?’
I said, 'You know what? I'm going to go to the US.'
I already was with my husband at the time. He was not my husband, he was my boyfriend. He was coming to do a master's here, and we said, 'Let's go. Let's live abroad. Let's have that experience.' Let's do a Master's degree. That's always a plus, brings some weight to my resume, and when I decide to come back, maybe to pursue a public career, maybe try a judge test or a prosecution, something on those lines, those have some weight when it's an international Master's degree. Let's go and study a bit, get that experience, get that extended knowledge, and that weight. Let's come back and see what to do.
Then life got in the way. I came here, life happened, one thing led to another and I stayed. I got great opportunities. I worked with great companies.
I had very nice mentors, people who helped me to see a completely different area that I could tackle and I could be good at, and I stayed. I'm happy here.
(Continued below)
Jackie Morreale (09:03)
Let’s take it back to law. Most interesting type of law?
Arielle Barreto (09:07)
I have two answers for that one.
If you think of personal connections, I'll say family law. In family law, you can sit with a client that comes to you, telling you that he needs help with a divorce because they're having the worst time of their life, but they're still wearing their wedding band. And they're going to tell you all the private and personal details and stories. After an hour, you're a lawyer, you're a friend, you're a therapist. For the personal connections, family law will be very interesting.
But for the intellectual part, I do think it's contracts. I love the mental exercise. Like using the words strategically to get to where you need things to go, or in negotiations, reading the opposite side and trying to figure out what they want, why they want it, and how you can get what you want, and how to make them accept what you want.
I think it's more my passion to solve problems. That will be the one for me.
Jackie Morreale (10:00)
Thing to do when you’re not practicing law?
Arielle Barreto (10:03)
I'm an Uber mom. That's basically where I spend most of my time. It's driving my kids to one place or another, sitting in parking lots.
You saw me already in parking lots. We already have that connection in parking lots.
Having my computer on, reading emails, and sometimes even doing calls while they're jumping from swimming to Kumon to golf, and I'm there, sitting, and driving.
It's not fun. I get a lot of back pain. I complain a lot on a daily basis at home.
But I also think it's an opportunity to be with the boys, and they can tell me what's going on in their lives. Very informal environment. What happened at school, what a friend did, what a friend didn't do, why he didn't like something, what they ate.
So, it's not good, but it's good.
Jackie Morreale (10:47)
I know that you’re an incredible lawyer, but you’re also an incredible mom. I know that being there and having that family experience every day is incredibly important.
Quote for life, if you have one?
Arielle Barreto (10:59)
I thought a bit on that one. I have quotes that I think are inspirational, usually from people I admire. There is a Brazilian driver, a fun driver, Ayrton Senna. My husband is a fan. My older son is a fan. We hear a lot about him at the house. There are some sports coaches from Brazil, usually related to work and discipline and how things need to be done.
Always depends on what's happening in your life at that time and what makes sense at the time.
But I do have one that survives throughout the year. Every time I remember that one, I'm like, yeah, that makes sense. It's from a Brazilian author, Paulo Coelho.
He says, ‘Life is too short to be small.’ I think I'm a very intense person. That comes with the way I like to live my life. Go big and all the way, because life is short.
Jackie Morreale (11:47)
I totally agree. That's you! You just exude it; you have a big personality. Everything you do is big. Go big or go home, like they say in Texas. So, life is too short to go small. Love it. So many levels.
Arielle Barreto (11:49)
Yes. It fits well. That's the one. Life is too short to be small.
Jackie Morreale (12:05)
Let's talk about law. What made you want to get into the field of law?
Arielle Barreto (12:09)
I was going to be a doctor. I was preparing myself to be a doctor.
After 15 seasons of ER, I could see myself saving lives with George Clooney in a random hospital anywhere. That's why I was going for it.
In Brazil, it's a little different than here. You have to choose the field you're going to when you finish high school.
We have this big test. You need to apply for the test at the university you want to attend, and you need to select the field you're going to.
I was 100% sure I was doing medical. I'm going there.
One day in my last year of high school, I was sitting in a classroom, which was a physics classroom with this teacher. We had no connection. He was not special to me. I don't think I was special to him. I was not the best student in that subject.
I was always a good student, but physics, I was OK.
There was nothing special in that relationship, but for some reason, he decided to come to me and say, ‘Hey, Ms. Barreto, what are you doing for your vestibular?' That is how the test is called. I said, 'I'm going to be a doctor.' He's like, 'What? No, you're not. You're going in the wrong direction. You're a lawyer. You should go for legal.' I'm like, 'Why do you think you can tell me I'm going in the wrong direction?' But that comment stuck with me.
For the following weeks, I started thinking and rethinking.
What did it mean by that? A lawyer.
What do I have that a lawyer needs? I started analyzing.
I had someone I worked with at that time. My parents hired one of those consultants to help you decide what you want to do with your life. I was 17. I had no idea what I wanted to do for my life. I started talking to her and doing some personality exercises and learning more about the legal field. When you do the application, in Brazil at that time, we went to the post office. I went to the post office with my application. There was still a blank on the field.
When I got there, I'm like, 'I'm going with legal.' Then I chose law school.
I submitted my application. I took the test and I passed on my first try.
I had to change my TV. I started watching Law & Order and Suits, and I have to change a little bit of what I was doing.
Jackie Morreale (14:11)
I think you’d be an amazing doctor as well. I think you just help people in a different way.
Arielle Barreto (14:18)
That's the thing. I think in every single thing you do, you need to make sure you're happy doing it. Even for legal.
I'm not the courtroom lawyer. That's not how I like to spend my time, with the formatted templates. I like to be involved in a more decision-making type of process.
In any area you choose to go, you can find what you're good at and use that in that direction.
Jackie Morreale (14:40)
Your parents thought of hiring someone to do that kind of personality analysis. I think that your personality is so perfectly matched for what you're doing.
If you're going to do something that's easier in life that you could excel at quicker, maybe, help more people in the long run, I think you found it!
Arielle Barreto (14:57)
When you're 17, and that happens a lot because in Brazil everyone needs to choose at 16, 17, 18. Most people start studying something and they gave up midway and they need to change it. For example, my husband started with administration. Then he graduated in psychology. Then he did finance. People move around because they have to choose so early. Here you have those couple of years where you go kind of generic. I think that helps a bit.
It is common in Brazil when you're on those final years of high school to have someone to walk you through the process and explain to you what a lawyer does. Most of the time, you don't even know. You can go to law school and not be a lawyer. You can go in so many directions with that.
Jackie Morreale (15:33)
Did you know anyone growing up who was also a lawyer? That maybe you were able to emulate or look up to?
Arielle Barreto (15:40)
I do have an experience. I have a close friend. She's a childhood friend. We were born a month apart. We were neighbors. We did a bunch of things together while growing up. Her grandfather was very recognized in the field of law. He was a judge. He grew up in the profession. It was so funny, because when I started law school, the first book that they told me to buy was one of his books, because he has an entire collection of books.
The entire country studies civil law through his books. I'm like, ‘I know this, it's Grandpa!’ It was so familiar to me and they always treat me as family. He was someone that inspired me and I had as a guide of what to expect, but it was also like, ‘I'm reading Grandpa's books!’
He learned about it, he sent me the entire collections of books and signed my books.
He has one daughter that's still working in a high position in the legal field in Brazil.
They always are there to support me. I know I can count on them anytime I need.
Jackie Morreale (16:35)
Between Grandpa and the physics teacher in high school, we really have to thank them, for setting you on the right path. It’s true!
Arielle Barreto (16:43)
The random physics teacher would change my life with a small comment on a regular school day.
He was paying attention. Even though I didn't see him as an inspired or one of the popular ones, he was paying attention, and that showed how great a teacher he was.
Jackie Morreale (16:59)
Teachers are amazing for just being leaders and getting us on our way. \
Speaking of getting on our way, how did you get started as a lawyer?
Arielle Barreto (17:08)
I experienced a lot. I went to different areas of the field. I worked with a judge in criminal law. I worked with a prosecutor in family law. I worked with a boutique firm on civil cases.
When I came to the US, was when I started getting involved and getting in touch with this more business type of field, more related to the business decision, the transactions. That was something like the commercial side; that caught my attention.
I'm also an international lawyer, so eventually you're going to get dragged into immigration. I did that for a while and I can do that, but I would not love to do that. That's something that does not excite me a lot.
I have been around; I have experienced different areas. The plan was to go back to Brazil. I got here and I realized there is this whole new world that I could be exploring and that was it.
Jackie Morreale (18:01)
How did you transition from practicing various types of law in Brazil, from family law, commercial law, and international law, then to the US?
Arielle Barreto (18:11)
The decision to come here, I say to everyone, was based on lack of credibility.
Again, I started law school when I was 17. I graduated, was 21, almost 22. I was this young girl that just graduated from law school… That's what I felt. I felt people did not trust me.
I will say something and they were going to look at me and they were like, 'What do you know?'
I had those looks pretty often. The legal field as many other fields are predominantly male, especially the heavy names. Those big names that everyone recognizes.
That has a weight, people respect those names, even though sometimes they're not even the ones doing the work, but they are recognized names.
I was like, ‘What am I going to be doing here? How am I going to get clients to trust me and pay me so I'm moving forward in my profession?’
I said, 'You know what? I'm going to go to the US.'
I already was with my husband at the time. He was not my husband, he was my boyfriend. He was coming to do a master's here, and we said, 'Let's go. Let's live abroad. Let's have that experience.' Let's do a Master's degree. That's always a plus, brings some weight to my resume, and when I decide to come back, maybe to pursue a public career, maybe try a judge test or a prosecution, something on those lines, those have some weight when it's an international Master's degree. Let's go and study a bit, get that experience, get that extended knowledge, and that weight. Let's come back and see what to do.
Then life got in the way. I came here, life happened, one thing led to another and I stayed. I got great opportunities. I worked with great companies.
I had very nice mentors, people who helped me to see a completely different area that I could tackle and I could be good at, and I stayed. I'm happy here.
(Continued below)
Arielle Barreto and Jackie Morreale Over the Years
(Continued)
Jackie Morreale (19:57)
I’m happy that you’re here. That’s how we know each other. I’m so happy that your stop, where you ended up, is South Florida. And the whole legal community is, as well.
What is your most memorable or proud moment while working?
Arielle Barreto (20:11)
Before I give you that, I'm a person who focuses on the bad. I'm the person who focuses on what goes wrong.
Jackie Morreale (20:17)
No, you’re not! Lol.
Arielle Barreto (20:18)
I'm going to say is not because I'm a negative person. I might be a little bit, but it's because I'm determined to make things go in the right direction.
If something went wrong, I need to analyze it. I need to understand, I need to make sure that that's not going to repeat. We're not going to make that mistake again.
Jackie Morreale (20:38)
That's fair. So, what was your worst memory of working in your field?
Arielle Barreto (20:39)
I remember one day, I was doing a contract negotiation. A big contract negotiation. We're expanding a new business arm in the corporation. I realized that I had messed up. I missed a 'no' in an entire paragraph that will make the entire sentence look completely different. We're giving them everything that we could not give them.
We were negotiating for months, and they said, ‘Oh, we are fine with this version.’ I'm like, yes, because I messed up. That was no sleep night and it was Hong Kong. There were a lot of discrepancies in the hours. That was a very bad mistake. Those happen.
I have a very good friend who has been my boss. She was one of my first bosses here in the US. She tells me, ‘That's just work. We can fix it, it's not your life. That's a work problem and you need to separate work problems from real problems.’
We were able to fix that thing.
I do focus on the bad and what went wrong, but I do have my proud moments, too.
I think when you get a visa approved, it's a celebration moment. When one year has passed, those long and excruciating negotiations are finalized, and that's something that is going to change the entire company direction, and it's going to build up the company value. That's very, very rewarding. I don't need to be awarded like big celebrations, but when I do something and someone just comes and says, I'm seeing that you're doing hard work and I see your determination, your discipline, your commitment.
I do feel great about it. I feel great when I'm afraid to do something or I'm doing something that I know I'm not good at or I might not succeed at and I'm able to finish. I always give him like a pat on the shoulder and like, yay, I did it. It goes both ways.
Jackie Morreale (22:27)
I think you're being very humble right now. I guess that means I know too much, but I know that there's so much to be proud of. I know that, my friend, you do really hard things and make them look easy. I'm very proud of you and everything that you do.
You really have this legacy of excellence. Everybody has their things that they strive to do better at. They do hard things every day, and we get past our fears and move forward, and accomplish these amazing things.
In a field that you said are perhaps male, or perhaps have gray hair, here you are as this amazing woman lawyer!
Arielle Barreto (22:32)
Thank you so much. There is always a way. There is always a way. You figure out a way to make things work. I'm a strategic person, right?
Jackie Morreale (23:08)
You are a very good communicator. So that's a strategic person, exactly.
Say you were that person who consulted with you back then at 17, what kinds of personality traits or characteristics do you think would help a young person be successful in the field of law?
Arielle Barreto (23:09)
Considering that my career is based on unsolicited advice, I enjoy giving people advice. So, let's do this!
I'm going to say that regardless of the field, the main advice I'll give to young people is that everyone can do their own thing and be better at it. I don't need you to follow me on what I'm doing, because this works for me, might not work for you. I try to guide them and say, ‘Hey, this is what I think.’
Take your time, think about it, see what makes sense for you. I feel that this new generation doesn't have enough commitment.
Those are the big words for me: Discipline and commitment.
Life is hard. Push it and you will get through it. Keep going and things will happen.
You're going to have to do things that you don't want to do, that you feel are beneath what you're supposed to be doing. That's life. That's how it goes.
You do have to do all of that to eventually get to the place where you can choose what you want to do.
Don't think that because you've graduated, you're ready to do what you want. No, you might still be doing things that you don't want to do. Like being treated sometimes when you're in a big firm, like a secretary or a paralegal.
Just push it and do the work and have commitment. If they ask you for something, do what they ask you for. Try to see how you can be helpful. What can I do to make the life of my superiors easier? Because that means they need me and if they need me, I have a job. It's the advice I'll give to them.
As for characteristics and personality, you can have your personality and you can be you. Do whatever you want to do and just do it your way. You're going to find a way.
I do start saying that they told me, ‘You're a natural lawyer.’ I think it's a preconceived idea that you need to be outgoing, but I know exceptional lawyers, they're quiet, on their own, and they do their thing in a way opposite to the way I do things, and they're doing just fine.
Jackie Morreale (25:11)
Everybody has their own style. There's no preconceived personality traits that are going to lead to your success in this field. You just have to love it, right?
Arielle Barreto (25:18)
I believe you can do whatever you want to do. I do believe if you want to do something, regardless of your personality, regardless of your experiences.
If you decide that's what you want to do, you're going to find a way of doing that.
Have that commitment and that discipline and the patience to go through it.
Be available. Things happen. It sounds cheesy, but it does. Things happen.
Jackie Morreale (25:42)
Moving to the US from Brazil midway through your career, what would you say to someone who's thinking about starting an LLM program? Could be directly after a JD or could be mid-career. Any words of advice on how to be successful in an LLM program?
Arielle Barreto (25:42)
That experience was amazing, amazing, amazing, amazing. That's the reason why.
You have people there that just got out of law school. You have people there that have been in the field for years and decided to come and do something different. We had different nationalities.
People from South America have a similar background to mine, but also different realities because we are so diverse in South America. We have the Europeans, we have people all over the place.
Mixing here in the US, the system is completely different. We are code-based. You guys have the common law.
That experience was very colorful.
Language is the first barrier you have.
I tell everyone, I'm not embarrassed to be wrong and I just speak.
I can say everything wrong and have all the verbs in the wrong position, but I'm going to raise my hand, and I'm going to answer that question. If you don't understand me, I'm going to explain and I'm going to try to make you understand me. I'm going to be part of it, and I'm going to be intense.
The main thing I can say is to have an open mind.
If you come after years of experience working in your home country, and you come here and you're like, 'That's not how I do it. I wouldn't do it this way, or I'll do it that way.' It's not going to be as rich for you as I think it was for me.
I think you need to have an open mind and be ready to learn that you can do things in a different way. There's always a different way to approach things.
Use this opportunity to see how things are done for different people from different perspectives.
Study a lot. You study a lot and drink a lot of coffee.
I stopped drinking coffee for a couple of years and then when I started my LLM again, coffee came back and it's in my life since then.
Jackie Morreale (27:33)
Yep, I totally agree. Especially with the school programs as an adult, you're like, ‘Mmm… that extra cup of coffee or tea, whatever, could really help right now.’
Anyway, you give such good advice. It's applicable to everybody. It's not just for a new lawyer. You have to be willing to make mistakes and learn from it, and move past it. To push past that awkward phase where you're learning, literally learning the language, a new country's culture, school system, legal system, whatever.
Starting something new, there's so much fear. Am I going to be good? Am I going to pass? Am I going to survive? Is this going to be worth the money that I'm spending? There's so many fears. Am I going to make friends? Even as silly as that, am I going to fit in?
Arielle Barreto (28:11)
We're back in middle school. I'm telling you, we're really in middle school.
I remember something. I do have a very proud moment on my LLM journey. We had this constitutional class, and everyone had to take the constitutional class because it's completely different. Because it was our first round of exams, she decided to give us a mock midterm exam.
We know how the exams work, and how a midterm looks, because you have a bunch of classes that you do with regular 1Ls and 3Ls. That was the way of the teacher to say, 'Hey, you guys are international students. This is a class you need to do for the Master's degree. But let me give you a heads up on how things work here.' So, we did the mock exam.
Then the following week, she brought two examples of answers of the mock exam, the best two, because everything here is about the curves and who did best, better than, it's not about getting right. You need to get better than someone else. It's something that I also learned here. She chose the best two, and she brought the best two for us to read the answers.
She started going with us during class and she answered the first one. One of my friends that's next to me, she's like, 'That's yours.' And I'm like, 'What?' I started flipping the pages. I'm like, 'That's me.' There was me! And there's another student that was from England. I'm like, I won because English is her first language… I'm here doing this in another language. So, I'm the best one here.
I don't care what you say, I was so proud.
Not because I was the best. I joke around with that, but like, 'Hey, I can do this.'
Jackie Morreale (29:45)
It’s the beginning of your program and your paper is pulled as one of the exemplary ones!
Look, I don't think anything can hold you down. You speak and work in three languages. If you're doing this in English right now, Spanish, Portuguese, whatever, I think you can learn anything and do anything you want around the world.
Arielle Barreto (30:04)
I think I'm reaching my top. I'm good with learning. No, I'm not. We need to learn. We need to keep improving, right? At least with languages, AI can help a lot now. I can rest.
(Continued below)
Jackie Morreale (19:57)
I’m happy that you’re here. That’s how we know each other. I’m so happy that your stop, where you ended up, is South Florida. And the whole legal community is, as well.
What is your most memorable or proud moment while working?
Arielle Barreto (20:11)
Before I give you that, I'm a person who focuses on the bad. I'm the person who focuses on what goes wrong.
Jackie Morreale (20:17)
No, you’re not! Lol.
Arielle Barreto (20:18)
I'm going to say is not because I'm a negative person. I might be a little bit, but it's because I'm determined to make things go in the right direction.
If something went wrong, I need to analyze it. I need to understand, I need to make sure that that's not going to repeat. We're not going to make that mistake again.
Jackie Morreale (20:38)
That's fair. So, what was your worst memory of working in your field?
Arielle Barreto (20:39)
I remember one day, I was doing a contract negotiation. A big contract negotiation. We're expanding a new business arm in the corporation. I realized that I had messed up. I missed a 'no' in an entire paragraph that will make the entire sentence look completely different. We're giving them everything that we could not give them.
We were negotiating for months, and they said, ‘Oh, we are fine with this version.’ I'm like, yes, because I messed up. That was no sleep night and it was Hong Kong. There were a lot of discrepancies in the hours. That was a very bad mistake. Those happen.
I have a very good friend who has been my boss. She was one of my first bosses here in the US. She tells me, ‘That's just work. We can fix it, it's not your life. That's a work problem and you need to separate work problems from real problems.’
We were able to fix that thing.
I do focus on the bad and what went wrong, but I do have my proud moments, too.
I think when you get a visa approved, it's a celebration moment. When one year has passed, those long and excruciating negotiations are finalized, and that's something that is going to change the entire company direction, and it's going to build up the company value. That's very, very rewarding. I don't need to be awarded like big celebrations, but when I do something and someone just comes and says, I'm seeing that you're doing hard work and I see your determination, your discipline, your commitment.
I do feel great about it. I feel great when I'm afraid to do something or I'm doing something that I know I'm not good at or I might not succeed at and I'm able to finish. I always give him like a pat on the shoulder and like, yay, I did it. It goes both ways.
Jackie Morreale (22:27)
I think you're being very humble right now. I guess that means I know too much, but I know that there's so much to be proud of. I know that, my friend, you do really hard things and make them look easy. I'm very proud of you and everything that you do.
You really have this legacy of excellence. Everybody has their things that they strive to do better at. They do hard things every day, and we get past our fears and move forward, and accomplish these amazing things.
In a field that you said are perhaps male, or perhaps have gray hair, here you are as this amazing woman lawyer!
Arielle Barreto (22:32)
Thank you so much. There is always a way. There is always a way. You figure out a way to make things work. I'm a strategic person, right?
Jackie Morreale (23:08)
You are a very good communicator. So that's a strategic person, exactly.
Say you were that person who consulted with you back then at 17, what kinds of personality traits or characteristics do you think would help a young person be successful in the field of law?
Arielle Barreto (23:09)
Considering that my career is based on unsolicited advice, I enjoy giving people advice. So, let's do this!
I'm going to say that regardless of the field, the main advice I'll give to young people is that everyone can do their own thing and be better at it. I don't need you to follow me on what I'm doing, because this works for me, might not work for you. I try to guide them and say, ‘Hey, this is what I think.’
Take your time, think about it, see what makes sense for you. I feel that this new generation doesn't have enough commitment.
Those are the big words for me: Discipline and commitment.
Life is hard. Push it and you will get through it. Keep going and things will happen.
You're going to have to do things that you don't want to do, that you feel are beneath what you're supposed to be doing. That's life. That's how it goes.
You do have to do all of that to eventually get to the place where you can choose what you want to do.
Don't think that because you've graduated, you're ready to do what you want. No, you might still be doing things that you don't want to do. Like being treated sometimes when you're in a big firm, like a secretary or a paralegal.
Just push it and do the work and have commitment. If they ask you for something, do what they ask you for. Try to see how you can be helpful. What can I do to make the life of my superiors easier? Because that means they need me and if they need me, I have a job. It's the advice I'll give to them.
As for characteristics and personality, you can have your personality and you can be you. Do whatever you want to do and just do it your way. You're going to find a way.
I do start saying that they told me, ‘You're a natural lawyer.’ I think it's a preconceived idea that you need to be outgoing, but I know exceptional lawyers, they're quiet, on their own, and they do their thing in a way opposite to the way I do things, and they're doing just fine.
Jackie Morreale (25:11)
Everybody has their own style. There's no preconceived personality traits that are going to lead to your success in this field. You just have to love it, right?
Arielle Barreto (25:18)
I believe you can do whatever you want to do. I do believe if you want to do something, regardless of your personality, regardless of your experiences.
If you decide that's what you want to do, you're going to find a way of doing that.
Have that commitment and that discipline and the patience to go through it.
Be available. Things happen. It sounds cheesy, but it does. Things happen.
Jackie Morreale (25:42)
Moving to the US from Brazil midway through your career, what would you say to someone who's thinking about starting an LLM program? Could be directly after a JD or could be mid-career. Any words of advice on how to be successful in an LLM program?
Arielle Barreto (25:42)
That experience was amazing, amazing, amazing, amazing. That's the reason why.
You have people there that just got out of law school. You have people there that have been in the field for years and decided to come and do something different. We had different nationalities.
People from South America have a similar background to mine, but also different realities because we are so diverse in South America. We have the Europeans, we have people all over the place.
Mixing here in the US, the system is completely different. We are code-based. You guys have the common law.
That experience was very colorful.
Language is the first barrier you have.
I tell everyone, I'm not embarrassed to be wrong and I just speak.
I can say everything wrong and have all the verbs in the wrong position, but I'm going to raise my hand, and I'm going to answer that question. If you don't understand me, I'm going to explain and I'm going to try to make you understand me. I'm going to be part of it, and I'm going to be intense.
The main thing I can say is to have an open mind.
If you come after years of experience working in your home country, and you come here and you're like, 'That's not how I do it. I wouldn't do it this way, or I'll do it that way.' It's not going to be as rich for you as I think it was for me.
I think you need to have an open mind and be ready to learn that you can do things in a different way. There's always a different way to approach things.
Use this opportunity to see how things are done for different people from different perspectives.
Study a lot. You study a lot and drink a lot of coffee.
I stopped drinking coffee for a couple of years and then when I started my LLM again, coffee came back and it's in my life since then.
Jackie Morreale (27:33)
Yep, I totally agree. Especially with the school programs as an adult, you're like, ‘Mmm… that extra cup of coffee or tea, whatever, could really help right now.’
Anyway, you give such good advice. It's applicable to everybody. It's not just for a new lawyer. You have to be willing to make mistakes and learn from it, and move past it. To push past that awkward phase where you're learning, literally learning the language, a new country's culture, school system, legal system, whatever.
Starting something new, there's so much fear. Am I going to be good? Am I going to pass? Am I going to survive? Is this going to be worth the money that I'm spending? There's so many fears. Am I going to make friends? Even as silly as that, am I going to fit in?
Arielle Barreto (28:11)
We're back in middle school. I'm telling you, we're really in middle school.
I remember something. I do have a very proud moment on my LLM journey. We had this constitutional class, and everyone had to take the constitutional class because it's completely different. Because it was our first round of exams, she decided to give us a mock midterm exam.
We know how the exams work, and how a midterm looks, because you have a bunch of classes that you do with regular 1Ls and 3Ls. That was the way of the teacher to say, 'Hey, you guys are international students. This is a class you need to do for the Master's degree. But let me give you a heads up on how things work here.' So, we did the mock exam.
Then the following week, she brought two examples of answers of the mock exam, the best two, because everything here is about the curves and who did best, better than, it's not about getting right. You need to get better than someone else. It's something that I also learned here. She chose the best two, and she brought the best two for us to read the answers.
She started going with us during class and she answered the first one. One of my friends that's next to me, she's like, 'That's yours.' And I'm like, 'What?' I started flipping the pages. I'm like, 'That's me.' There was me! And there's another student that was from England. I'm like, I won because English is her first language… I'm here doing this in another language. So, I'm the best one here.
I don't care what you say, I was so proud.
Not because I was the best. I joke around with that, but like, 'Hey, I can do this.'
Jackie Morreale (29:45)
It’s the beginning of your program and your paper is pulled as one of the exemplary ones!
Look, I don't think anything can hold you down. You speak and work in three languages. If you're doing this in English right now, Spanish, Portuguese, whatever, I think you can learn anything and do anything you want around the world.
Arielle Barreto (30:04)
I think I'm reaching my top. I'm good with learning. No, I'm not. We need to learn. We need to keep improving, right? At least with languages, AI can help a lot now. I can rest.
(Continued below)
How to Get in Touch with Arielle Barreto, LLM
(Continued)
Jackie Morreale (30:08)
True. But the way you are able to understand the law and write in three different languages and it's an amazing talent.
I'm not surprised at all that your paper was picked as the best one! Amazing.
Arielle Barreto (30:25)
That was a proud moment. If you think of that, it was like, ‘Woohoo!’
It was validation.
I left my country, I was here with my husband, but my family was there, and getting used to it.
Even going to the supermarket. How do I buy ham? Or butter? What is the butter that I'm going to like?
You're on trial for everything.
That was like, 'Yeah, I think it was a good choice. I think we're going to be fine.’
Jackie Morreale (30:47)
Like a small win. Everybody needs one, every now and then. A little validation to know that you are taking a baby step forward.
Want to talk about advice for a new international lawyer?
Arielle Barreto (30:55)
I can give advice on that one. For the international lawyers, if they decided that they're coming to the US.
The main thing is get qualified. It is a reality. Go through the LLM process. A bar exam makes a lot of difference for you to be able to work here.
I also think that it's important to use your international background in your favor.
Focus on areas where you can add value with your international experience and be patient.
The transition will take a while. You need to be patient. You need to gradually build that credibility. You need to build knowledge and experience and networking.
Nowadays, everything is about networking.
Build step by step, and things will happen.
Jackie Morreale (31:35)
This might be too much, you tell me, you’re the lawyer. Any legal insights to share with business leaders looking to protect themselves?
Arielle Barreto (31:43)
This is what I will tell my team and people that I work closely with:
Stop seeing your lawyer as a problem. Start looking at your lawyer as an ally. I'm not here to make your life more complicated, to make the transactions more complicated or slow things down. I'm here to help.
Make sure you involve [your lawyer] in business decisions.
We are able to move things quickly if we know what's going on. So, participate with your lawyer in your decisions.
On the business side of it, they can make you get where you want to be in a more efficient and safe manner.
See, a lot of advice. We need to start giving others like, what are you going to tell a person that is looking for a husband? We can give advice all day.
Jackie Morreale (32:34)
You do have an amazing husband and two amazing kids, too. We could probably talk just about middle school.
Arielle Barreto (32:38)
I can do that one, how to be mean to your kids so they are good kids. So, they do everything they need to do.
Jackie Morreale (32:49)
So they're scared, and going to get all A's in middle school, lol.
We already talked about your physics teacher, we talked about Grandpa and the legal books he wrote. Any shout-outs to team members? Could be kudos for their great work, or people who have helped you?
Arielle Barreto (33:01)
We cannot start naming specific people because I will forget and then everyone is going to be upset. But I did cross paths with very important people. I do appreciate all the help I got through my career.
The prosecutor I worked with on family law, he taught me so much. Mainly how to deal with those personal interactions and how to see through very tough subjects, like sitting in a courtroom, hearing very, very heavy testimonials.
I learned so much with the people that I work with here, too. I have great mentors.
I have mentors that challenge me, and I felt very mad about it, because I'm like, ‘Why are they doing this to me?’ And you feel angry.
But when I sit and I look back, I say, ‘Thank God this person came to my life because she made me so much better than I was planning to be.’
I have great people who came here and said, 'I'm going to hold your hand. I'm going to walk you through it.'
I'm a team person. I think that's why I like sports so much. I do like to work in a team. I do like to have people around.
There is space for everyone. I do believe that.
I do like to win and be the best, but I want to win and be the best that I can be.
I don't want to be better than anyone else.
If you need me, you know that, I'm here. What do you need from me? Just say how high and I'll jump. If I like you, if I trust you, if I feel you're in my corner or if you need me, because I do have those people too, I will jump because that's my personality.
Thank you to all of them, from the physics professor to my current boss, who is always telling me, ‘You are making me feel useless.’ I'm like, 'Oh, I'm glad to be here, to make your life easier. That's why I'm here.'
My kids need to do sports. It's a way to connect with people. When they're playing a game and someone is not doing that well, I'm like, 'Go there and make that kid feel that he's part of the team and it's not on him, it's in all of you.'
It's not your success, it's all your success. These are life lessons.
You need to teach them.
I think my parents did that well. They did teach me that through sports.
I think that I'm a better professional because of that.
Jackie Morreale (35:04)
What are the best ways to get in touch with you or your firm for legal council?
Arielle Barreto (35:09)
If you follow me online, you're going to see a lot of kids related content. It's because we live abroad, right? I'm living in the US, my family is in Brazil.
As you mentioned at the beginning, you can go to the floridabar.org website. There is a special tab for foreign legal consultants. You're going to be able to find me there. I'm always here for advice, or for anything you need from me.
Jackie Morreale (35:31)
Absolutely. Next time we'll have to continue with the advice...
Arielle Barreto (35:36)
We should do a special segment. Ask a question, and we can go from there.
Jackie Morreale (35:39)
My gosh, a special, I agree! We'll have to do it over lunch.
As long as it's not the top ramen stuff that you're eating, we can do it over a foodie lunch…
Arielle Barreto (35:49)
I'm telling you, you need to try it. Let's do ramen the next time you come and you're going to tell me if I'm not right.
I just want to say thank you. I'm very happy to be here. When you first invited me, I'm like, what am going to talk about? Why would people want to hear what I have to say? Because we go there. We as women and moms, we go there.
Thank you for having me. I had a lot of fun. I like to analyze. As soon as you give me a question about what is your passion, I'm like, ‘Ooh, what is my passion?’
Am I actually exercising my passion or not?
You know how to explore the best from people and put light on it and expand that to the world. I do admire that.
Jackie Morreale (36:24)
I admire you in a big way. You're able to get over little bits of self-doubt whether it's saying ‘yes’ to do a podcast or it's getting through moving to a new country or a new program where you're literally taking your career and opening your mind to the possibilities. You have to be so smart to do what you did and to get through it.
Arielle Barreto (36:43)
I say a lot to my boys, it's not that I'm smart or things like that. I'm just willing to do the work. No matter what it is, I am willing to do the work. Even if I'm afraid to do something, I don't let my fear stop me. I just try to figure it out how I'm going to do that
in a way I'm comfortable with. I might not be able to do it all, but find mechanisms to pass that situation that scares me a little bit. I hope that people who are listening to us can have that as an incentive to start looking at the situations a little differently.
Jackie Morreale (37:17)
I totally agree. To see that you can do hard things. If there's three things: talent, attitude, and willingness to work hard...
Arielle Barreto (37:20)
You can have very talented players, they're not going to get anywhere.
You can have very committed players that are going to get somewhere, because they're committed and they're putting in the work.
If you have a talented player that is committed, they go all the way.
So, find your talent, commit to it, and wait for it.
Jackie Morreale (37:42)
I learned so much from you. Arielle, thank you so much for your time today. I look forward to the next chat. Part two! Have a wonderful day.
Arielle Barreto (37:48)
Part two, we need to find something for part two. Bye-bye.
To learn more about Arielle Barreto, visit: floridabar.org/mybarprofile/ArielleBarreto
Jackie Morreale (30:08)
True. But the way you are able to understand the law and write in three different languages and it's an amazing talent.
I'm not surprised at all that your paper was picked as the best one! Amazing.
Arielle Barreto (30:25)
That was a proud moment. If you think of that, it was like, ‘Woohoo!’
It was validation.
I left my country, I was here with my husband, but my family was there, and getting used to it.
Even going to the supermarket. How do I buy ham? Or butter? What is the butter that I'm going to like?
You're on trial for everything.
That was like, 'Yeah, I think it was a good choice. I think we're going to be fine.’
Jackie Morreale (30:47)
Like a small win. Everybody needs one, every now and then. A little validation to know that you are taking a baby step forward.
Want to talk about advice for a new international lawyer?
Arielle Barreto (30:55)
I can give advice on that one. For the international lawyers, if they decided that they're coming to the US.
The main thing is get qualified. It is a reality. Go through the LLM process. A bar exam makes a lot of difference for you to be able to work here.
I also think that it's important to use your international background in your favor.
Focus on areas where you can add value with your international experience and be patient.
The transition will take a while. You need to be patient. You need to gradually build that credibility. You need to build knowledge and experience and networking.
Nowadays, everything is about networking.
Build step by step, and things will happen.
Jackie Morreale (31:35)
This might be too much, you tell me, you’re the lawyer. Any legal insights to share with business leaders looking to protect themselves?
Arielle Barreto (31:43)
This is what I will tell my team and people that I work closely with:
Stop seeing your lawyer as a problem. Start looking at your lawyer as an ally. I'm not here to make your life more complicated, to make the transactions more complicated or slow things down. I'm here to help.
Make sure you involve [your lawyer] in business decisions.
- Why do you want to go in that direction?
- Why is that opportunity so important for the company?
- What will the company win from that opportunity?
- Why do you want things to move quickly?
We are able to move things quickly if we know what's going on. So, participate with your lawyer in your decisions.
On the business side of it, they can make you get where you want to be in a more efficient and safe manner.
See, a lot of advice. We need to start giving others like, what are you going to tell a person that is looking for a husband? We can give advice all day.
Jackie Morreale (32:34)
You do have an amazing husband and two amazing kids, too. We could probably talk just about middle school.
Arielle Barreto (32:38)
I can do that one, how to be mean to your kids so they are good kids. So, they do everything they need to do.
Jackie Morreale (32:49)
So they're scared, and going to get all A's in middle school, lol.
We already talked about your physics teacher, we talked about Grandpa and the legal books he wrote. Any shout-outs to team members? Could be kudos for their great work, or people who have helped you?
Arielle Barreto (33:01)
We cannot start naming specific people because I will forget and then everyone is going to be upset. But I did cross paths with very important people. I do appreciate all the help I got through my career.
The prosecutor I worked with on family law, he taught me so much. Mainly how to deal with those personal interactions and how to see through very tough subjects, like sitting in a courtroom, hearing very, very heavy testimonials.
I learned so much with the people that I work with here, too. I have great mentors.
I have mentors that challenge me, and I felt very mad about it, because I'm like, ‘Why are they doing this to me?’ And you feel angry.
But when I sit and I look back, I say, ‘Thank God this person came to my life because she made me so much better than I was planning to be.’
I have great people who came here and said, 'I'm going to hold your hand. I'm going to walk you through it.'
I'm a team person. I think that's why I like sports so much. I do like to work in a team. I do like to have people around.
There is space for everyone. I do believe that.
I do like to win and be the best, but I want to win and be the best that I can be.
I don't want to be better than anyone else.
If you need me, you know that, I'm here. What do you need from me? Just say how high and I'll jump. If I like you, if I trust you, if I feel you're in my corner or if you need me, because I do have those people too, I will jump because that's my personality.
Thank you to all of them, from the physics professor to my current boss, who is always telling me, ‘You are making me feel useless.’ I'm like, 'Oh, I'm glad to be here, to make your life easier. That's why I'm here.'
My kids need to do sports. It's a way to connect with people. When they're playing a game and someone is not doing that well, I'm like, 'Go there and make that kid feel that he's part of the team and it's not on him, it's in all of you.'
It's not your success, it's all your success. These are life lessons.
You need to teach them.
I think my parents did that well. They did teach me that through sports.
I think that I'm a better professional because of that.
Jackie Morreale (35:04)
What are the best ways to get in touch with you or your firm for legal council?
Arielle Barreto (35:09)
If you follow me online, you're going to see a lot of kids related content. It's because we live abroad, right? I'm living in the US, my family is in Brazil.
As you mentioned at the beginning, you can go to the floridabar.org website. There is a special tab for foreign legal consultants. You're going to be able to find me there. I'm always here for advice, or for anything you need from me.
Jackie Morreale (35:31)
Absolutely. Next time we'll have to continue with the advice...
Arielle Barreto (35:36)
We should do a special segment. Ask a question, and we can go from there.
Jackie Morreale (35:39)
My gosh, a special, I agree! We'll have to do it over lunch.
As long as it's not the top ramen stuff that you're eating, we can do it over a foodie lunch…
Arielle Barreto (35:49)
I'm telling you, you need to try it. Let's do ramen the next time you come and you're going to tell me if I'm not right.
I just want to say thank you. I'm very happy to be here. When you first invited me, I'm like, what am going to talk about? Why would people want to hear what I have to say? Because we go there. We as women and moms, we go there.
Thank you for having me. I had a lot of fun. I like to analyze. As soon as you give me a question about what is your passion, I'm like, ‘Ooh, what is my passion?’
Am I actually exercising my passion or not?
You know how to explore the best from people and put light on it and expand that to the world. I do admire that.
Jackie Morreale (36:24)
I admire you in a big way. You're able to get over little bits of self-doubt whether it's saying ‘yes’ to do a podcast or it's getting through moving to a new country or a new program where you're literally taking your career and opening your mind to the possibilities. You have to be so smart to do what you did and to get through it.
Arielle Barreto (36:43)
I say a lot to my boys, it's not that I'm smart or things like that. I'm just willing to do the work. No matter what it is, I am willing to do the work. Even if I'm afraid to do something, I don't let my fear stop me. I just try to figure it out how I'm going to do that
in a way I'm comfortable with. I might not be able to do it all, but find mechanisms to pass that situation that scares me a little bit. I hope that people who are listening to us can have that as an incentive to start looking at the situations a little differently.
Jackie Morreale (37:17)
I totally agree. To see that you can do hard things. If there's three things: talent, attitude, and willingness to work hard...
Arielle Barreto (37:20)
You can have very talented players, they're not going to get anywhere.
You can have very committed players that are going to get somewhere, because they're committed and they're putting in the work.
If you have a talented player that is committed, they go all the way.
So, find your talent, commit to it, and wait for it.
Jackie Morreale (37:42)
I learned so much from you. Arielle, thank you so much for your time today. I look forward to the next chat. Part two! Have a wonderful day.
Arielle Barreto (37:48)
Part two, we need to find something for part two. Bye-bye.
To learn more about Arielle Barreto, visit: floridabar.org/mybarprofile/ArielleBarreto
Continued reading, recommended by Arielle Barreto:
The Last Day of My Life. Published January 1, 2010.
By Jim Moret (Author).
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