Denis Michael Devlaming

DENIS M. deVLAMING

Mr. deVlaming was educated at the Ohio State University where he received a B.A. in Psychology (1969). He graduated from Stetson University College of Law in 1972 with a Juris doctor degree.  He accepted an appointment as a Florida Assistant State Attorney where he prosecuted in the Sixth Judicial Circuit from 1972 through 1975. Thereafter, he started his own law practice and has specialized in criminal defense ever since. 

           Mr. deVlaming is the past president of the Pinellas County Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (1987), the Pinellas County Trial Lawyers Association (1991) and the Clearwater Bar Association (1994-1995). He also served as Chairman of the Criminal Law Section of the Clearwater Bar. He was elected statewide President of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (2002-2003) and is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. In 2001 he was named senior counsel in The College of Master Advocates And Barristers and in 2010 he was inducted in to the American College of Trial Lawyers. He currently serves as president of First Step, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to helping needy men and women who are on probation.

            He is Board Certified in criminal law (1988-present) and has been approved by the Florida Bar to give Continuing Legal Education seminars on every aspect of the criminal trial. For over twenty years he has been asked to lecture at the Board Certification Seminar for criminal trial law. He has authored numerous articles touching upon matters involving criminal law in both state-wide and national periodicals. Mr. deVlaming is an adjunct professor at Stetson College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida teaching “Advanced Criminal Trial Advocacy” and is a past adjunct professor at the University of South Florida. He has also been a guest lecturer for the St. Petersburg College and the “Peoples Law School” in Pinellas County and been asked to speak at the statewide Florida Judicial Conference on criminal law (Circuit and County), the Florida Public Defender’s Association (trial tactics), the Gerald T. Bennett prosecutor/public defender trial training program at the University of Florida, the National College of DUI defense held at Harvard law school and “Masters of DUI” held in Miami, Florida (2006). He has also travelled around the state giving a three hour interactive ethics seminar to the combined offices of the state attorney and public defender. And has coordinated, produced, directed and acted in several mock trials for cable television.

             Mr. deVlaming has been inducted into “Who’s Who In American Law” (1989-present) and has been included in the book “Best Lawyers In America” (Naifeh and Smith, 1995-present). He was selected as one of the best criminal defense lawyers in Florida by the Florida Trend magazine (July 2004-6), Florida Monthly magazine (Sept. 2003), the Tampa Bay magazine (1997), the Tampa Metro magazine (2003-4) and Florida Super Lawyers magazine (2006-present). The Tampa edition of the Business Review newspaper included him as one of the Gulf Coast’s most influential lawyers (Oct. 2003). The national rating service of attorneys (Martindale-Hubbell) has given him an “A” rating since 1987. He is also listed in that publication’s “Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers”. His peers have presented him with awards for professionalism and excellence in the field of criminal law by awarding him “The Barney” award (Inns of Court, 1997), “The Hindman” award (Pinellas County Criminal Defense Lawyers, 1998), “The Richard T. Earle” award (voted on by all Pinellas County Florida judges, 1998),“The William Reece Smith”award for professionalism(Stetson College of Law, 2008) and the “Jack Edmund” award (The Herbert G. Goldburg Inn of Court, Tpa. 2011).