Corporate, Securities & Tax

This Hispanic Heritage Month, we are pleased to highlight Niki Whitecar, an associate in our Corporate group in Baltimore. Niki talks about her background and shares how being fluent in Spanish has been beneficial at work and important at home.

“I’m half Cuban and a first-generation American on both sides. My Cuban grandmother came to the United States in 1960 when an opportunity arose through her employer, Esso Standard Oil, amid the upheaval brought by Fidel Castro’s rise in power. She was alone with my mom in tow, who was only 3. It’s an unbelievable story: Ask me about the rum and gemstones!

“There have been a remarkable number of instances over the years where people around the firm have needed a fluent Spanish speaker to translate in support of a matter. It’s been fun to get exposure to different practice areas as a result.

“The language has been the most important part of the culture that I’ve tried to impart on my kids, in addition to the excellent food. They learned to speak Spanish before English and love being about to switch back and forth. My husband, who is a dentist, is still working on it after 20-plus years, but he at least has a good command of the dental words.”