Tessie Solorzano
Riverside, CA
Appointed by the Legal Aid Association of California
Current Term Extends through June 30, 2028
Tessie Solorzano has been a practicing attorney for over twelve years and employed at Inland Counties Legal Services (ICLS) since 2011. ICLS is a non-profit law firm dedicated to providing free legal services for the low-income residents of Riverside and San Bernardino Counties since 1958.
Mrs. Solorzano began her legal career as a legal intern in 2008 in Georgia while studying at Emory University School of Law. She was hired at ICLS in 2011 as a paralegal, hired as a Staff Attorney in 2012, became a Managing Attorney in 2017. After an organizational restructuring; she was promoted to Practice Group Director of the Health Law / Public Benefits team in 2018. Mrs. Solorzano served as Deputy Director of Operations from 2019 until she was hired as Executive Director February 2023 after a national search.
The investment in civil legal aid (and particularly in the Inland Empire) is very personal for Mrs. Solorzano. She grew up in San Bernardino County and too often saw and heard the needs of her friends; benefits stopping, not enough food on the table, evictions, educational needs not being met, and she wanted to do more to face these challenges and help to make systemic changes that would improve the lives of folks in my community.
Truly, to make this change requires investing in civil legal aid and recognizing that our legal system favors those who have legal representation and more often come from a privileged background. It requires respecting and elevating the voices of our clients and assisting in asserting their rights. It requires valuing staff for their diverse backgrounds, lived experiences, and amazing talent, and providing them with the resources they need to be successful in their advocacy efforts.
While serving as ICLS’ Deputy Director of Operations Mrs. Solorzano led the difficult but extraordinarily fruitful task of addressing bias within the organization by reexamining organizational practices, analyzing data, and prioritizing recommended improvements to internal processes so that as an organization ICLS could reaffirm its commitment to fostering a culture of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging for all staff members. With support from staff and senior leadership, she established the first ICLS DEIB Committee comprised of staff from all positions in the program to spearhead DEIB initiatives and trainings for all to participate in. The Committee meets monthly, has led program wide trainings, events, book clubs, and different initiatives including revisions to the employee handbook, a suggestion box, dress code revisions, and overall elevating the voices of staff throughout the program. DEIB is a core value, and she intentionally views decisions through a DEIB lens.
Mrs. Solorzano has just been elected to the Legal Aid Association of California (LAAC) Board of Directors which will help elevate the voices of those in the Inland Empire which encompasses a large swath of rural and frontier communities. She works at bringing in additional supporters, both community partners as well as potential donors (relationships that have been fostered through her many years at ICLS).