Amy Ruiz

Amy Ruiz earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a focus on Marketing and International Economics from the University of Florida in 2000, and her Juris Doctorate from the Florida State College of Law in 2004, where she was a member of the Journal of Transnational Law & Policy and studied Comparative Constitutional Law in Austria with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. A native of Tampa, she began her legal career as an Assistant Public Defender for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit from 2004 to 2006, before transitioning to a role as an Assistant State Attorney, where she handled thousands of cases ranging from misdemeanors to first-degree felonies. In 2011, Ms. Ruiz moved into insurance defense before founding her own firm, Amy Ruiz Law, PL, in 2012, where she focuses on criminal defense, traffic, and personal injury cases. She has served as a board member and past president of the Tampa Hispanic Bar Association and is involved in various legal and community organizations, including the Tampa Bay Inn of Court and the Academy of the Holy Names Alumni Association. Ms. Ruiz is licensed to practice in both state and federal courts in Florida and is the 2024 recipient of the Sheriff’s Hispanic Advisory Council’s Raymond E. Fernandez award, recognizing her contributions to the criminal justice system in Hillsborough County