Touro Law Center's Office of Development, Alumni Relations and Communications is proud to announce that Richard Lopez ’97 has been selected as the alum of the month for October. Mr. Lopez remains an active member of the alumni community and participates in programs for students, and volunteers to meet with prospective students at Law School Forums in his area. His accomplished career is highlighted in the bio below. On behalf of the entire law school community, we extend our congratulations to Richard Lopez.
Richard Lopez has his own law office located in Miami, Florida, practicing in the areas of international trade finance, Export-Import bank financing, international business transactions, commercial transactions and real estate transactions.
· He advises and counsels small and medium sized entities with regard to commercial transactions.
· Drafts all pertinent legal documentation in connection with Export-Import Bank transactions for the Export-Import Bank approved lenders.
· Coordinates with foreign counsel on legal opinion letters and legal due diligence with regard to Export-Import Bank and international trade finance transactions.
· Prepares and advises clients with respect to residential and commercial real estate matters.
· Provides title insurance for real estate lenders and borrowers involved in real estate transactions.
In addition to practicing law, Richard Lopez is the managing principal of Drake Finance Group, an approved Direct Guaranteed Lender of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. Drake Finance Group is a leader in international trade finance with a team of international bankers and loan underwriters and more than 100 years of export finance experience combined. Richard served as the Director of Enterprise Florida (Florida Department of Commerce) and Special Projects Advisor to the Venezuelan-American Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Caracas, Venezuela. In this position, he was responsible for developing trade and investment opportunities between Florida and Venezuela. Richard was also a legal consultant during his stint in Latin America and worked for law firms in Brussels, Belgium, Lisbon, Portugal and London, England. He received his J.D. from Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center, where he was a member of Phi Alpha Delta. He also completed semester programs at the University of Miami School of Law and the University of Detroit School of Law (London Program). In addition, Richard earned a Master of International Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management, la Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara and a Master of Arts in International Studies from the University of Miami. He completed his Bachelor of Arts in International Relations at Florida International University and speaks Spanish, French and Portuguese. Richard is a member of the Florida (International Law and Business Law sections) and District of Columbia Bars. He is also a licensed and registered export credit and political risk insurance broker with the Export-Import Bank of the United States. He is also a member of the Attorneys Title Insurance Fund, American Bar Association (International Law Section) and a member of the Dade County Bar Association.