Paul D. Petruzzi
Attorney
Mr. Petruzzi has devoted his entire legal career to the representation of clients involved with criminal matters. His clients include individuals and corporations under Federal or State criminal investigation or prosecution nationwide. His representation includes assisting clients during all stages of criminal investigation from interviews to grand jury appearances and subpoena compliance. The core of Mr. Petruzzi's practice is the defense of his clients during jury trial, or on direct appeal or other post-conviction proceedings from writs of habeas corpus to substantial assistance. He has also assisted clients in Europe, the Caribbean, and Central and South America pending extradition or rendition. As such, Mr. Petruzzi has the experience and knowledge to have earned the reputation that he has as a tenacious and aggressive advocate who thoroughly prepares for the defense of his clients.
Originally from Olean, New York, Mr. Petruzzi is a 1990 graduate of Hamilton College where he majored in government with a minor in music and African American studies. He is a 1993 graduate of the University of Miami School of Law where he won the book award for his legal writing skills and where he was the Executive Editor of the University of Miami Entertainment and Sports Law Review. Mr. Petruzzi began his career as a criminal defense lawyer in 1993 with prominent Miami criminal defense attorney Roy Black.
During his association with Mr. Black, Mr. Petruzzi represented clients in both Federal and State court charged with a variety of offenses including complex white collar crimes, major narcotics and money laundering crimes, racketeering and wire fraud offenses. Since starting his own criminal defense law firm in January of 1999, Mr. Petruzzi's criminal defense practice has included virtually every conceivable type of criminal matter including narcotics offenses (involving both traditional and synthetic drugs), fraud and theft offenses, money laundering, murder (death penalty and non-death penalty), arson, assault, battery, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, battery of law enforcement officers, kidnapping, robbery, stalking, racketeering (RICO), tax fraud, mortgage fraud, Medicare fraud, Ponzi schemes, Medicaid fraud, wire fraud, computer crimes, firearms offenses, sex crimes, white collar crimes, and countless other felonies and misdemeanors.
Mr. Petruzzi has been a member, in good standing, of the Bar of the State of Florida since 1993. Mr. Petruzzi has also been licensed to practice before the United States Supreme Court since 1997 and dozens of Federal Courts since 1994. He is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, and the United States District Court for the District of Colorado, and the United States District Court for the Western District of New York. Similarly, Mr. Petruzzi has also been admitted to practice in various criminal matters before the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, and the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, as well as State Courts in Connecticut, Louisiana, and Texas. He has also assisted foreign counsel in various jurisdictions on criminal extraction matters including Aruba, Canada, Colombia, Curacao, Germany, Haiti, Honduras, Israel, Mexico, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, and the United Kingdom.
Mr. Petruzzi has been recognized as one of the "Top 100 Trial Lawyers" by the American Trial Lawyers Association, every year, from 2007 to 2020. He has had the highest, 10.0, “Superb,” rating by AVVO for several years and he has also been awarded the highest rating by Martindale Hubbell for over fifteen. The Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings are an objective indicator of a lawyer's high ethical standards and professional ability, generated from evaluations of lawyers by other lawyers and judges.
Among other distinctions, Mr. Petruzzi is a Life Member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, a life member of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers-Miami Chapter, and he has been on the legal committee for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws for over fifteen years.
Many of Mr. Petruzzi's criminal cases are reported in the media worldwide. Stories of his cases and clients have been featured on ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CNN, MSNBC and many local affiliates, as well as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Miami Herald, The Sun Sentinel, The New York Post, The New York Daily, Miami New Times, The Chicago Herald, The Chicago Tribune, Reuters, The Associated Press, The Key West Citizen, Ocean Drive Magazine, and many others.