Jaime Gutierrez LL.M. '20, left and his wife Lupita Gutierrez, right. Photo taken prior to March 2020
Dec. 15, 2020 - Jaime Gutierrez knew at the age of six he wanted to be a lawyer, but his career took a different path to engineering. Still, the dream of being an attorney lingered for decades.
"One day in 1995, over a cup of coffee, my wife Lupita and I were discussing my dream of going to law school," Gutierrez shared. "That’s when she said, ‘You do not want to be 60 years old and wonder whether you could have made it through law school.'"
Gutierrez took his wife's words to heart and now at 64, not only does the father of three have a law degree from South Texas College of Law Houston, he’ll receive a Master of Laws degree from the University of Houston Law Center with a specialization in intellectual property and information technology law. Getting a second law degree was also at the encouragement of his wife.
Despite his educational triumphs, Gutierrez has never been a practicing attorney. Having a solid knowledge of the law helps him in his current job at Occidental Petroleum, he said, to negotiate software contracts with other large companies.
When the time comes to retire, Gutierrez said he’s interested in teaching law courses. You can bet his biggest supporter, Lupita, will be there to cheer him on.
