Toronda Silas: San Antonio's
Newest Bankruptcy Attorney

Shortly after graduating from Miami Law, Toronda Silas will relocate to San Antonio where she will begin work as a bankruptcy attorney at Cox & Smith Inc. The small firm is nationally known for its bankruptcy practice. Toronda came across the position when she attended one of the American Bankruptcy Institute's regional seminars with her Bankruptcy Law professor, Patricia Redmond. "It was Professor Redmond who introduced me to a partner at Cox & Smith. And to think I almost didn't take her class because it finished at 10 o'clock at night! She's been an amazing professor and not just because of the job. She has been a tremendous resource on bankruptcy law."

Toronda recently returned to Miami for graduation ceremonies from Chicago, where she spent her final semester interning for the U.S. Trustee's Office. During her two summers in law school, she clerked for a firm in Stuart, Florida and for the U.S. Federal Bankruptcy Court in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. During her second and third year, she worked for Rodriguez, Tramont, Guerra & Nunez and Michael P. Rudd & Associates.

In law school, Toronda was active in the Black Law Students Association and H.O.P.E. Last year she was the president of the Entertainment & Sports Law Society and as a 3L, she served as the editor-in-chief of Amicus Curiae Yearbook. During the past two years she was one of two student members on the Faculty Appointments Committee.

Toronda earned her degree in business management from Georgia Tech in 1996. In college she was on the track team and was named to the All-ACC Academic Honor Roll from 1994 to 1996. She was team captain in her senior year, and in 1996, she qualified for the Olympic Trials.

Toronda did not take the direct route to law school from undergraduate. After graduating from Georgia Tech, she worked for the Federal Reserve Bank in Atlanta, followed by four years as a consultant for PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

As a graduating 3L, her advice to this fall's incoming class is to find an activity or hobby outside the law school to give some balance to their lives. "Working out is what kept me sane in law school. During my first year, I lived in the library and the gym."

Falling just shy of representing her country in the Olympics before her hometown of Atlanta, Toronda has not abandoned her Olympic dreams. She's currently training for her first triathlon.