the first autistic person who practices the right

At the age of 3, she was diagnosed with autism and the doctors thought she could never work or live alone. Last month, she became the first openly autistic person to be admitted to the Florida Bar.

Haley Moss, born in Parkland, the doctors had not predicted a promising future. He was suffering from autism and they believed it was the reason he could never work for a minimum wage or live alone. Against all odds, last month she became the first openly autistic person to be admitted to the Florida Bar.

Haley Not only graduated from the University of Miami Law School and approved at the Florida Bar, he has also published several books, lives independently and works in a large law firm in Miami.

A few weeks later in his legal career, he has already understood how some of his strengths and difficulties are affecting his work.

"I am pbadionate about things that I like and that I like to write," said Moss. "It's also one of the reasons I studied law and I like being able to help others. Even with writing, I love being able to express myself completely and what I can say has the ability to help. to someone else. "

Joseph Zumpano is co-founder and principal shareholder of Zumpano Patricios, the law firm founded in 2003 and based in Coral Gables, who offered a job at Moss before taking the bar exam. He said his favorite practice areas, including anti-terrorism laws and care management, are "intrinsically linked" to his decision to hire Moss.

Notable victories of the Zumpano company include a 2004 lawsuit against the Cuban government for the murder of a US CIA pilot mission and a 2015 lawsuit in which it represented Antonio Caballero, whose father, Carlos Caballero, was ambbadador Colombian, was kidnapped, tortured and murdered by drug traffickers and Colombian drug traffickers.

"When did I introduce Haley By a former lawyer in our office, I immediately understood that she was brilliant, brilliant and a good person, "said Zumpano.

"As a core value, we wanted to be the first firm to hire an openly autistic lawyer and show him that if you match people with their strengths and give them the opportunity, they stand out", he declared. "To our knowledge, Haley He is the first attorney we 've known in a large law firm in the state of Florida that is overtly autistic. There may be others, but we have not found them. "

For Zumpano, the decision also comes from a place of personal understanding and a desire to increase diversity within his company.

"I have a badly autistic son," he said. "It's largely non-verbal, it's going to say a few words, but it's an angel, and it was an honor for me and my wife to have it in our lives, we'd Let's raise and we love it and we look forward to the day when there will be a better future for what we consider neurodiversity in our country. "

Moss and Zumpano gave advice to potential employers of people living with autism or with other diagnoses.

"For employers, I would say" do not set limits "and" invest in what anyone can do, and you need to see what people can do instead of what they do could not do "." Moss said. "In general, a disability does not cover everything, it's just part of what anybody is, not all that is, we are all unique, we all have strengths and weaknesses and we all have talent . "

For those who may be reluctant to increase neurodiversity among their employees, Zumpano says "get ready, let's go".

"The benefits that I will have, tactically, when I open my business to people with neurodiverse diseases, with strengths that could be overlooked, I will benefit from, this business will benefit from it." and the customers will benefit, "he said. "Our company is at a level where we can align people with extraordinary strengths to achieve extraordinary results."

They also encouraged job seekers to never give up and capitalize on their strengths rather than being limited by their weaknesses.

"My advice to people with disabilities and people with autism who are looking for work or something else is not to be limited – knowing what is good also helps a lot," said Moss.

The moving message of the autistic young man's mother received as an engineer

"If you are an autistic person or family with an autistic family member, do not let other people's perceptions impose theirs," Zumpano said. "Haley He broke this glbad ceiling and the company is proud to be the hammer that breaks it, there is hope for everyone. "

Moss said that "even with parents of young children, I always tell them," You will be surprised what your child can do. Your journey is just beginning when you are diagnosed. They will be. with talent and you will be surprised and constantly surprised, "and really embrace that and embrace what makes them who they are, what they do well and what makes them special. "

For more information on the Unicorn Children's Foundation, visit UnicornChildrensFoundation.org.