- February 7, 2025
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Heather Vargas leads a busy life with a full schedule.
The wife, mother and now managing partner at Cobb Cole, a Daytona Beach law firm, isn't afraid to accept challenges and make a plan for success. Vargas was elected as the new managing partner to replace Thomas J. Leek whose four-year term expires at the end of the year.
With her new role at the firm she is now working to continue the growth where she works as well as expand geographically. Vargas said she would like to see the firm move beyond their Daytona and DeLand locations to possibly reach further north and south.
Vargas has noticed an interest from the Orlando legal community looking at venturing into Volusia and Flagler counties, which could start creating a new set of competitors. However, it's a challenge Vargas is willing to take on and a continuation of what she has been doing in the 18 years she has been at the firm.
"I really love the problem solving aspect of it," Vargas said. "I really enjoy having someone come to me and saying, 'this is my issue,' and being able to work out a solution that makes everybody happy. That's really the joy in practicing law for me."
Looking back at Vargas' journey to becoming a managing partner, it's clear to see her passion for law has deep roots. She comes from a family of lawyers — her father was an attorney at Cobb Cole for almost 40 years, she has an uncle who is also a lawyer and her grandfather was an attorney.
When Vargas was in high school she spent two summers working in the file room of the same firm where she would one day move from associate all the way to managing partner. Vargas practiced law in California before returning to Daytona Beach and joining Cobb Cole on Dec. 7, 1999.
She is also one of less than 150 Board Certified Intellectual Property attorneys in Florida and currently serves as chair on the Intellectual Property Law Certification Committee at the Florida Bar.
As the managing partner, Vargas is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the business of the law firm, which includes problem solving, dealing with administrative issues and overseeing the budget — all tasks a CEO would do in a traditional business.
"That's the distinction between practicing law working with clients and running the business working for the business of the firm," Vargas said. "I spend several hours a day working for clients then several hours working on firm business."
Helping run a firm is only part of what Vargas does though. She also works with her children's robotics team at Spruce Creek High where her husband, Omar, leads the programming team. Her son, Diego, has been involved in robotics since the 7th grade and her daughter, Abigail, recently joined the high school program.
Vargas handles logistics and the community outreach team. It's been a part of her life for the past four years.
And despite her busy schedule, Vargas has found a way to balance her ever-changing life and sums it up in four words:
"Every day is different."
