ELIZABETH RICCI

Attorney Ricci has been interviewed on MSNBC, CNN, CBS, Fox, Univision and Al Jazeera and has been quoted in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, on the front page of the Florida Bar News, and Florida Trend, among other major media outlets.  (Links below.)  

Described as an “immigration law expert” on MSNBC's Reid Report and holding a "10.0 'superb'" rating by Avvo and an AV Preeminent rating by Martindale, Ms. Ricci has worked in the area of immigration law since 1989 and has given immigration seminars in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and New York. She has been an expert witness in litigation regarding immigrant employment issues and has co-counseled with personal injury attorneys representing immigrant plaintiffs.

Attorney Ricci received her Bachelor of Science in International Business from Barry University and her Juris Doctor from Nova Southeastern University where she studied immigration law under renowned immigration expert and author, Ira Kurzban and argued in Washington, D.C. for the Moot Court Honor Society. Attorney Ricci was an Adjunct Instructor in Legal Studies at Barry University where she taught immigration, among other subjects.

Ms. Ricci currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Capital City Chamber of Commerce.  She was appointed by the Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court to serve on the Advisory Committee for the Pro Bono Service Awards.  She received the DWCF's 2016 Humanitarian Award and the 2015 Second Judicial Circuit Florida Bar President's Pro Bono Award for outstanding contributions for the good of the public.  On August 23, 2014, she was honored for her "tremendous contributions to the community" by the Captial City Democratic Women's Club.  From 2012-2013, she was a political analyst for the online talk show "Generation NeXt: Life and Politics with Chuck Hobbs". She was named the Zonta Club of Tallahassee’s 2013 “Zontian of the Year.” In 2012, Ms. Ricci was featured by 850 Business Magazine as a Rising Star under 40, was named by the Tallahassee Democrat as one of 25 Women You Need to Know and was profiled by Nova Southeastern University as an outstanding alumnus for her work with US military veterans. The "Elizabeth Ricci Veterans Law Clinic Scholarship" was established there in her honor.  

Ms. Ricci is regularly invited as a guest commentator on radio and television.  She testified before the Florida House Committee on Economic Affairs in opposition to HB 7089, Florida's Arizona copycat anti-immigration law due to its unconstitutionality. She also appeared on the political talk show "The Usual Suspects" and discussed the ramifications of such a law which was eventually largely struck down as being unconstitutional. In 2010 Ms. Ricci was named the Woman of Distinction in Law by the Girl Scout Council of the Big Bend. In 2004 she was named Pineview Elementary Volunteer of the Year.

Her publications include a 2017 article in Multilingual Magazine, the 2016 piece "US Immigration benefits for Professional Translators and Interpreters" which appeared in the ATA journal "The Chronicle",  the 2014 article "Ethically and Zealously Responding to Boilerplate National Interest Waiver RFEs" found in the American Immigration Lawyers Association South Florida Chapter's Annual CLE materials, the July-August, 2011 Harvard Gay & Lesbian Review Op-Ed "Will Same Sex Binationals Get Justice?”, the digital article "Hope for GLBT Binational Couples", the 2011 AILA Magazine cover story "DWU: Driving While Undocumented", "E-Verify Enrollment: A Potential Marketing Tool for Florida Employers?", the 2010 Op-Ed piece "Immigration Reform is Critical to Florida", the entry "Citizenship" in the Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court, an article in the 27th Annual "Immigration Law Update" two judicial profiles in "The Federal Lawyer" magazine, "Witness Protection: Effectively Representing a Jehovah Witness Applicant for Naturalization" and "Citizens and Immigrants," a section of Florida Guide for Pregnant Teens.  Her article "Cultural Sensitivity to Foreign-Born Litigants:  A Practical Guide" is forthcoming. 

Ms. Ricci was quoted by the Society for Human Resource Management.  A member in good standing of the Florida Bar and Federal Bar Northern and Middle Districts of Florida, and the United States Supreme Court, Ms. Ricci is immediate past president of the Federal Bar Association Tallahassee Chapter, immediate past American Immigration Lawyers Association Central Florida Chapter Liaison to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles for alien licensure.

Ms. Ricci has served as co-chairperson of the Tallahassee Bar Association Membership Committee, Executive Vice Chair of the Central Florida Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and a member of the Stafford Inn of Court. She was Treasurer of the Big Bend Fair Housing Center and is past District Justice of the international law fraternity Phi Alpha Delta. She served on the Tallahassee/Leon County Cultural Resources Commission.

Fluent in Spanish, Ms. Ricci served in the United States Peace Corps in Guatemala as a Small Business Development volunteer and has lived in Spain, Ecuador, and Mexico.

Watch "Elizabeth's Story" at http://youtu.be/uPf0FJX8zBo

Selected media links:

http://www.msnbc.com/the-reid-report/watch/who-is-really-affected-by-obamas-action--361869891980

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/13/us/after-forming-deep-roots-in-us-man-discovers-he-isnt-a-citizen.html?

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/mario-hernandez-in-immigration-limbo-after-u-s-says-hes-no-citizen/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/21/mario-hernandez-citizenship_n_5367554.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2629749/Immigration-officials-review-mistaken-citizenship.html

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