Ms. Ruiz practiced law at Spears Barnes et al., in Durham, North Carolina for five years before relocating to Florida. She spent some 10 years at Thornton, Mastrucci & Minkin in Coral Gables before joining the firm in 2001. She is admitted to practice law in Florida and North Carolina.
A graduate of the University of Colorado, where she received a Bachelors of Arts degree, magna cum laude, and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, Ms. Ruiz earned her Juris Doctorate from the National Law Center at George Washington University in 1984.
Ms. Ruiz is extremely active in a number of different areas of community service. She works as a pro bono Guardian Ad Litem attorney for dependent children in Dade County through Lawyers for Children America; she also serves on the management team of Special Olympics Miami Dade County, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Coral Gables Junior Woman's Club.
