A woman has become the first “openly-autistic” lawyer to be admitted to the Florida Bar, her employer has said.
Florida-born Haley Moss was sworn in by Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Lisa Walsh on January 11.
She now practices law with a focus on health care and international matters.
Joseph Zumpano, co-founder and managing shareholder of the Zumpano Patricios, where she is now employed, told the Sun Sentinel: “When I was introduced to Haley by a former lawyer at our firm, I immediately picked up on the fact that she was obviously brilliant — brilliant and a good person.”
He added: “As a core value, we wanted to be the first firm to bring in an openly autistic lawyer and make the point that if you align people to their strengths then given the chance, they excel.”
Ms Moss, 24, could read and do 100-piece jigsaw puzzles but was non-verbal at the age of three, when she was diagnosed with autism.
Doctors at the time worried she may never be able to live independently or gain meaningful employment, according to the New York Post.
But, she has since authored three books, the first of which was released when she was 15, and attended college at the University of Florida, where she graduated with two degrees after three years.
Asked by the Post what made her choose law school, Moss said, “I knew I wanted to be a lawyer because I love writing and telling my story, and lawyers do that every day.”
She added that she wanted to be able to make a positive difference as an advocate both in and out of the court system.
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