Today we’d like to introduce you to Peterson Tavil.
Hi Peterson, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I immigrated from Haiti to the United States in 2009. A few weeks immigrating to the United States, I enrolled in the English program at the Orlando Technical College (Orlando Tech). A year later, I started my first college classes at Valencia College. It was very hard taking college classes while still learning English, but I did it. In January 2013, In 2012, I applied and got accepted into the Pre Law program at UCF where I majored in Legal Studies, minored in Criminal Justice, and Specialized in Criminal Law and Individual Liberties. After graduating from UCF, I enrolled in the Criminal Justice Master Program as well as two Certificate programs, Cyber Security and Crime Analysis. In 2016, I received an acceptance letter from the Inter American University of Puerto Rico School of Law and paused the master studies to pursue a Juris Degree (JD). During my 3rd year of law school, I received an employment offer from the State Attorney’s Office for the Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida. After graduation, I moved back to Florida, took the Florida Bar exam, and started working as a prosecutor. Unfortunately, I failed the bar exam the first time. I got demoted from my role as a prosecutor to a Certified Lega Intern. In April 2020, I passed the bar exam and obtained my law license. I started working again as a prosecutor and tried Misdemeanor, Juvenile, and Felony cases until I left the State Attorney Office in December 2021 to work for Geico. I worked at Geico as a staff counsel in the Personal Injury Protection (PIP) department. At Geico, I argued many motions and sharpened my negotiation skills. I left Geico in September 2024 to open Tavil Law Pa, which is now the fastest growing law firm in Central Florida.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The road has been very bumpy. From the moment I immigrated to the United States until now. I have faced a lot of adversities from learning to speak a new language to adapting to a new culture, it has been very challenging. There were times that I wanted to go back to Haiti. I thought I would not be able to do it. I have faced discrimination everywhere that I have been. But, I used my obstacles to my advantage. They became the oil that keep my engine running smoothly. When a negative comment is thrown at me, I tend to dissect it. I take the positive from it and throw out the negative. For instance, when I was working at Disney in 2011, a guy came by my booth to purchase a parking ticket. Because my accent was very strong and it is still strong, he told me to go back to my country because “we speak English here”. I told him “thank you, sir.” I thought about what he said and he bothered me. So, I asked myself the following question: “Am I expected to Speak English in the US?” And the answer was yes. So, what I did was, I threw away the negativity from his comment and took the positive part of it. So, I made sure that I invest more time learning to speak English. I adopted the same formula or mentality wherever I go.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Tavil Law PA?
Tavil Law, P.A. is a law firm that is located at 5749 Westgate Dr., Ste 202, Orlando, Florida 32835. We specialize in Immigration, Criminal Defense, DUI, and Personal Injury.
At Tavil Law, we treat our clients as family. They come as strangers and leave as family. The difference between Tavil Law and the others is that we take time to educate our clients about the process of their case. We value each and every single customer we have. We do not treat them as a number. We are proud of the feedback we have gotten so far. Our clients speak highly of us. Of course there are few who are not fully satisfied. But we make sure to address their concerns. And every client who come to us leaves with a better understanding of he legal process.
At Tavil Law, it is not about how much money we can make from your case, but how can we stand by you to make you whole again or to defend your constitutional rights. And that is why our slogan is Strength in Advocacy and Excellence in Justice. At Tavil Law, we fiercely advocate for our clients.
How do you define success?
Success for me is accomplishing all goals that I have set for myself be it financial, personal, and/or professional. But, truthfully, it is sometimes unattainable mostly on the personal side. As human beings, we evolve and as we are evolving, we keep setting (personal) goals. And, because of the constant evolution, we always have something to chase. However, when I meet my financial and professional goals, even if the personal is not yet accomplished, I will consider myself as a successful person.
