Ricardo Rivera

Mr. Rivera represented me on 2 separate Felony Charges; Attempted Burglary and Possesion of Controlled Substance. At first I was scared that the Prosecutor was not going to budge and that I would have 2 Felony Convictions and Jail time. Even after I failed my first chance at Pre Trial Intervention, w...hich Rick worked very hard to achieve, he still gave 110%. After all was said and done he was able to conclude my case with one of the Felonies being dropped down to a Misdemeanor with a withheld adjudication and the other Felony to also adjudication withheld with only 18 months probation and a chance at 9 month early termination. I can honestly say retaining Mr. Rivera as my Attorney to represent me was a blessing and is the only lawyer in the area I can recommend without a doubt.

I was facing criminal, domestic, and DUI. Rick was able to move my division from L to R and that is very difficult from what he explain to me. Not only has he gotten my DUI reduced his also gotten me into a program, where if I complete it, I'll have no charges with my criminal and domestic. Having ...a lawyer that's been on both sides of the law as a police officer, public defender, and defense attorney is my best advice to anybody looking to hire an attorney, and Mr. Rivera is that attorney. Not only did he do all of this for me but he also worked out a payment plan with me which many other lawyers do not. His assistant Miss. Laura and himself were always available to me and answered my emails, texts, or phone questions. On top of all of that I was also put on a temporary injunction in another County which he took on and defended me. If you're facing anything at all within the court system you need protection and this attorney will do that for you. I'm so very grateful that I was able to include him in all of my proceedings. Mr. Rivera and Miss.Laura are my rock through all of this because it was very scary and just knowing that I had someone so able to defend me helped me stay calm. He has all the information needed, I never had to wait for anyting and he always advised me and has my best interest and he kept me safe. I never questioned or went into court without speaking to Mr. Rivera prior to the preceding so we went in fully aware of what was going on and that is a peace of mind that is priceless.

Last year I caught a felony charge of possession of a controlled substance and DUI. Ricardo was recommended to me by a family member that new I was not satisfied with the attorney I had at the time. Once I hired Rick he got right on the case and had my felony expunged and beat the DUI down to a reckl...ess driving with no points on my record! I also was recently involved in a misdemeanor charge that had me in violation of probation. Rick not only got that charge completely dropped but also had the judge waive my violation of probation. I'm not the type of person to write reviews but if it wasn't for Ricardo Rivera I would be sitting in jail right now.

I started off with another attorney based out of Tampa (Hillsborough). My DUI charge was based in Pinellas county. The first attorney started great asked questions and told me everything he was going to do. However after that first conversation that’s where my experience declined. Although he might h...ave been well regarded in Tampa (Hillsborough), that didn’t translate into pinellas. He wrote a letter had a few conversations. But at the end of the day he wanted me to take a run of the mill DUI plea (same plea I could have taken without an attorney). I felt enough was not done and consulted Rick. Rick had helped a friend out previously on a separate charge. Rick even worked with me on payments as I was already out money with the first attorney. After Rick took over he really worked the case well. His first course was getting my case reassigned to another court (new judge and prosecutors). From there slowly the case progressed, they also didn’t want to work with my case so Rick scheduled a trial date and a motion to have some evidence thrown out. I didn’t want to go to trial for fear of harsher penalties (jail time, court costs, longer probation etc) Rick told me to be patient and let him work. Just prior to my court date we got a favorable settlement to reckless. Was well worth it to hire Rick! The only hiccup was a small communication error and I showed up to a court date I wasn’t needed but that gave me a chance to see Rick in action. If you have a charge and it’s based in Pinellas Rick Rivera is the man you want!

I met Rick Rivera when I had a recent run in with the law. I was charged with DUI, Driving on a suspended license and refusal. The case started off with the DMV hearing. When he showed up to meet me he came prepared with case law and a great defense in which the outcome was in our favor and he won th...e hearing. I immediately got my license back. On the criminal side I was still facing the DUI , driving on suspended and refusal charge. When we had our day in court he was able to get the Driving on suspended dropped, DUI reduced to a reckless driving and time served on the refusal. The deal he made with the state regarding my probation was the cherry on top. I only received community service. No DUI school, no device in my car,no impound of my vehicle. The outcome was so much better than I expected considering my past. I highly recommend Mr Rick Rivera for any criminal and or DUI case. He went above and beyond in every way. Thank you Rick for the greatest outcome possible.