Elizabeth Montano, Esq.

Elizabeth Montano has been an associate with KKTP since September 2019. She practices in all areas of immigration law, but focuses primarily on federal immigration litigation, investor-based nonimmigrant and immigrant visa applications, and other complex cases in front of the Immigration Court and before USCIS or the Department of State. Elizabeth is passionate about immigration law and goes the extra mile to help her clients achieve their goals. 

Since graduating in 2019, Elizabeth has dedicated considerable time to supporting the law school and its students as an engaged and passionate alumna. She serves on the University of Miami Law Review’s Young Alumni Council and the Miami Law Moot Court’s Alumni Advisory Board, showcasing her commitment to fostering student success and empowerment in the organizations she values deeply. In January 2025, Elizabeth joined the University of Miami School of Law faculty as an Adjunct Professor of the Miami Law Immigration Clinic. In this role, she teaches, supervises, and mentors clinic students, equipping them to advocate for immigrants in complex immigration proceedings and to collaborate with immigrant rights organizations on initiatives focused on legal reform and advancing social justice for immigrant communities. 

Elizabeth is an avid writer and has published numerous academic articles about timely and important topics. In 2019, Elizabeth won the Law360 Distinguish Legal Writing Award for her article, The Bring Your Own Tampon Policy: Why Menstrual Hygiene Products Should Be Provided for Free in Restrooms, which was published in 2018. She also won the Yale Law Journal's 2019 Student Writing Competition for her Essay, The Rise and Fall of Administrative Closure in Immigration Courts, which was published in 2020. This article has been cited by several federal courts, including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Elizabeth has also co-authored an article with Professor Rebecca Sharpless, entitled Divisibility Redux: "Alternatively Phrased Statutes" and State Law in the Post-Mathis Categorical Approach, which was published in 2019, and an article with KKTP Partner Edward F. Ramos, entitled Does It Really Matter?: Making the Case for a Materiality Requirement in False Claims to U.S. Citizenship Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, which was published in 2021. 

Education

• University of Miami School of Law, Coral Gables, Florida
  • J.D.
  • Honors: summa cum laude
• University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida
  • B.A., Bachelor of Arts
  • Honors: cum laude
  • Major: Interpersonal & Organizational Communications

Admissions

• Florida
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Florida
• U.S. Court of Appeals 1st Circuit

Honors

• 2019 Law360 Distinguished Legal Writing Award
• 2019 Daniel B. Gaubatz Memorial Award
• 2019 Roger Sorino Award
• 2018 CLEA Outstanding Clinical Student Award
• 2019 Yale Law Journal Student Writing Competition Winner
• University of Miami Iron Arrow Honor Society

Published Works

• Elizabeth Montano & Edward F. Ramos, Does It Really Matter?: Making the Case for a Materiality Requirement in False Claims to U.S. Citizenship Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, 75 U. Miami L. Rev. 1214 (2021)
• Elizabeth Montano, The Rise and Fall of Administrative Closure in Immigration Courts, 129 Yale L.J. Forum 567 (2020)
• Elizabeth Montano & Rebecca Sharpless, Divisibility Redux: “Alternatively Phrased Statutes” and State Law in the Post-Mathis Categorical Approach, 1 AILA L.J. 149 (2019)
• Elizabeth Montano, The Bring Your Own Tampon Policy: Why Menstrual Hygiene Products Should Be Provided for Free in Restrooms, 73 U. Miami L. Rev. 370 (2018)

Past Positions

• University of Miami School of Law Immigration Clinic, 2017 to 2019