As a personal injury attorney here in Burbank, I spend most of my days fighting for people who’ve been injured and need someone to stand up for them. At the Law Offices of Adrianos Facchetti, we help clients rebuild their lives after unexpected events, but there’s another kind of work I’ve done that’s just as meaningful, and it doesn’t involve money at all.
A few years ago, I took on a pro bono adoption case through the Alliance for Children’s Rights, a Los Angeles nonprofit that helps foster kids find loving families. That experience changed me in ways I didn’t expect, because I was once one of those children myself.
I was adopted when I was only three days old. My birth mother was one of seven children from a family in Nicaragua. She didn’t have the means to care for me, so she made the difficult decision to place me in foster care.
By what can only be described as a miracle, a nurse reached out to a friend of my adoptive parents. They had already adopted a five-year-old boy and were hoping for another child. My parents contacted my birth mother in the hospital and decided to adopt me.
Years later, I found myself standing in the same courthouse where my own adoption had taken place, but this time, I was the lawyer. I had been paired with a couple fostering a five-year-old girl named Domonique.
When I walked into the courtroom that day, I noticed right away that the atmosphere was unlike anything I’d ever experienced as an attorney. Courtrooms are usually tense places, people arguing, emotions running high. But this day was different. The kids were laughing, parents were smiling, and there was a real sense of celebration.
When I met Domonique, I knelt down beside her and asked, “Do you know who I am?”
She said, “You’re my lawyer.”
Then I asked, “Do you know what we’re doing today?”
She smiled and said, “Yes, I’m getting a mommy and a daddy!”
I told her, “That’s right. And thirty-three years ago, in this same courtroom, my parents chose me.”
That moment is one I’ll never forget. During the hearing, I told the judge, “Your Honor, this is a special day for me, too,” and shared my story.
After the adoption was finalized, we took photos with the family and the judge. Everyone was smiling. It was one of the happiest days I’ve ever had in court.
A few years later, Domonique’s father reached out to me on Twitter. He sent a photo of her graduating from junior high, along with one of those pictures from the adoption day. I still treasure those photos, they remind me why I do what I do.
That experience reaffirmed something I’ve always believed: the most meaningful victories in law aren’t always about money. Sometimes, they’re about helping others experience the kind of love and stability that once changed your own life.
Working as a Burbank personal injury lawyer, I help people recover from hardship and move forward. But moments like Domonique’s adoption remind me that the law can do more than resolve disputes, it can build futures.
I’m proud to live and work in a community like Burbank, where people care about giving back. Whether it’s helping accident victims recover or supporting local families through the Alliance for Children’s Rights, I believe the greatest rewards come from using what we do best to help others.
Adrianos Facchetti
Law Offices of Adrianos Facchetti
