Trial Attorney
Betsy Cardenas
Betsy Cardenas is a rising star at Pajcic & Pajcic and is the firm’s youngest partner – having joined the firm in 2019. Betsy graduated in the top 5% of her law school class in 2015 and previously served as a staff attorney for the 4th Judicial Circuit. Prior to joining Pajcic & Pajcic in 2019, Ms. Cardenas cut her teeth on the defense side, working for a premier insurance defense firm in Jacksonville. Betsy is trusted to handle some of Pajcic & Pajcic’s most significant injury cases and trials, including a recent 8 figure settlement where she was the lead attorney.
As a child, Betsy Cardenas had great admiration for her grandmother, who was a social worker, and her mother, who was a mental health counselor. Betsy always thought she would follow their path, with her burning desire to help others, so she majored in social work at the University of Georgia. During a college internship, she became frustrated, feeling like she wanted to do more to assist those in need. Her professor encouraged her to go to law school, where she could have an even greater impact. She took her professor's advice and pursued her law degree Florida Coastal School of Law, where she was an honor student. It was also during that time that she became a law clerk at Pajcic & Pajcic for three years.
Betsy is thrilled to be back at the Pajcic firm, this time as an attorney handling auto, trucking and product liability cases, among others. "It is such a great place to work. I know why people never leave. I was spoiled to have this as my first law firm experience when I was a student." Betsy now feels like she has returned to her roots, back to her original dream of helping people in need, as she spends every day working to seek justice for her clients and help them move on with their lives after facing tragic circumstances.
Personal Interests
Betsy married her high school sweetheart, Andres, in 2012. Andres worked to put Betsy through law school. She is now returning the favor, as she works; he is currently pursuing his life-long dream of earning his college degree. Andres is originally from Bogotá, Colombia and they often speak Spanish at home so she can try to learn the language. They stay busy raising their three rescue dogs.
Education
Juris Doctorate, magna cum laude, Florida Coastal School of Law, Jacksonville, FL, 2015
- Staff Editor, Florida Coastal Law Review
- Governor's Merit Scholarship (awarded to top 5% of students)
- Book Award for Highest Grade in Lawyering Process II, Pre-trial Litigation Drafting, Alternative Dispute Resolution, and Employment Discrimination
Bachelors of Social Work, cum laude, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 2011
- Delta Zeta Sorority, Historian
- Phi Alpha Social Work Honor Society
- National Association of Social Workers
- Delta Epsilon Iota Honor Society
Credentials
- Florida, 2015
- United States District Court
- M.D. of Florida, 2016
- S.D. of Florida, 2016
- Fourth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, Staff Attorney - 2016
- Boyd & Jenerette, P.A., Associate - 2016 - 2019
Memberships
- Florida Justice Association
- Jacksonville Justice Association
- Florida Association of Women Lawyers
- Jacksonville Women Lawyers Association