Caterina Ranieri
Introducing
Caterina Ranieri
Attorney
Caterina’s dual citizenship journey began back in 2010 when she first discovered her eligibility to be recognized as a citizen of Italy. Caterina’s mother came to the United States in 1958 when she was just 17 years old. She worked tirelessly, eventually becoming a US citizen in 1963, before returning to Davoli (CZ), Italy, in 1964 to marry Caterina’s father. Six months before Caterina and her twin brother, Vincenzo’s birth, her parents arrived in the United States, marking the beginning of Caterina’s unique story.
Caterina’s Italian-born mother had already become an American citizen by the time Caterina was born, which initially seemed to preclude her from pursuing Italian citizenship. However, her father had not yet become a US citizen at the time of her birth, opening the door for her eligibility through jure sanguinis with Italy.
Caterina embarked on a journey to gather the necessary documents, secure Apostilles, and arrange translations, all in preparation for her application at the NYC Italian Consulate in September 2011. By 2012, her application was completed and approved. June 2013 marked a significant moment when Caterina and her three children received their cherished Italian passports. Through this process, Caterina not only honored her rich Italian heritage but also embraced modern traditions.
As mentioned above, Caterina has a twin brother, Vincenzo. As the children of Italian immigrants, the siblings primarily spoke the Italian dialect at home. Once they entered school and being the only familiar faces at their new school, the twins initially conversed only in dialect and struggled with English. School administrators went to the extent to advise their parents to stop speaking Italian at home and use only English.
In fact, Caterina even adopted a nickname in place of her given name because people found it challenging to pronounce, let alone spell her name. Eventually, she reverted to her original name as a tribute to her grandmother.
These experiences highlight the challenges Caterina faced and she truly understands these difficulties, having been the child of immigrant parents herself. Thanks to her determination, Caterina has successfully navigated the citizenship process, which has allowed her to share her skills with clients who are also on their own journeys.
Today, Caterina’s firm has assisted hundreds of clients in getting one step closer to realizing their dreams by helping them obtain crucial New York State and US federal documents. She also assists clients in filing name change petitions for various reasons, including the reclamation of family names that may have evolved over the years.
Caterina’s story has also been published in the National Italian American Bar Association, of which she is a proud member.
