Chris Barnes is an attorney with a passion for the Latino community. Having studied Spanish for nearly 20 years, Chris is fluent and enjoys conversing with his clients and members of the community in the Spanish language. Chris served as a volunteer social worker in Mexico for a year and has also studied abroad in Spain and Costa Rica. Chris has visited other Spanish-speaking countries, such as Ecuador and Nicaragua. Chris has the unique ability of understanding Latin culture as well as U.S. culture and uses this understanding to relate to clients and give informed advice, taking cultural factors into consideration.

Chris earned his undergraduate degree (B.A.) in Communication Studies with a minor in Spanish from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2004 and his doctor of jurisprudence degree (J.D.) from North Carolina Central University School of Law in 2012. Chris has been a N.C. licensed attorney since August of 2012.

While in law school, Chris was elected as Justice of the Watkins Chapter of Phi Alpha Delta Legal Fraternity. Chris was a Staff Editor of the NCCU Law Review and was Vice President of the Hispanic Law Student Association. Chris served as an intern in the Orange County District Attorney’s Office from 2010-2012. Chris is now a member of the N.C. District 15B Bar, the North Carolina Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and sits on the officer nominating committee for the 15B Bar.

Prior to attending law school, Chris was a high school Spanish and ESL teacher in Eastern North Carolina. While teaching, Chris coached the schools’ cross country, basketball, and soccer teams. During the summer of 2005, Chris designed and implemented an ESL program to educate the immigrant communities in the South Bronx, New York. The program is still active today.