This page is for lawyers. There are two ways to work with me, and you choose the one that fits: refer the case and hand it off, or keep your client and bring me in as co-counsel. I focus on two kinds of matters, serious and forensic-heavy criminal defense, above all DUI cases that turn on the science, and plaintiff’s personal injury.
Either way, the draw is the same. I do the work that wins these cases at a level the defense bar does not always reach: the breath and blood chemistry, the suppression issue, the cross of the analyst, and the trial itself.
I wrote the book other lawyers use
When you refer a Florida DUI case to me, you are handing it to the person who wrote the reference other defense lawyers reach for. The Florida DUI Trial Manual is my working method for reading the State’s forensic science and taking it apart, from the first discovery request to the closing argument: breath, blood, and field sobriety testing, measurement uncertainty, retrograde extrapolation, the cross-examinations of the analyst and the officer, and a complete motion and form set. The ebook is available on Amazon, with a free sample you can read there before you buy, and a hardcover coming soon. If the number is the whole case, that is exactly the matter to send or share.
Two Ways to Work Together
A referral is a clean hand-off: you send the case, I take it from there, and the fee is divided as the rules allow. Co-counsel keeps you in: you keep your client and your relationship, and I come in for the forensic motions, the hearings, the expert strategy, or the trial, in whatever role the case needs. Some lawyers refer outright, some want a second chair on a hard hearing, and some want quiet help where my name never appears. All three are welcome.
I hold one of the rarest credentials in DUI defense, the ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist designation from the American Chemical Society’s Chemistry and the Law Division, one of only six attorneys in Florida and just over a hundred nationwide. I am also an NHTSA-qualified instructor in the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests, I have advanced training in forensic chromatography, drug analysis, and pharmacology through Axion Labs, and I began as an Assistant Public Defender in Florida’s Thirteenth Judicial Circuit. I also serve on the National College for DUI Defense’s National Task Force committee on alcohol and drug testing devices, the breath, oral fluid, and transdermal instruments these cases turn on. When a case lives in the lab packet, I can work it from the inside. More on the credential.
What I Bring
Most of the value shows up before trial. I read the discovery the way the analyst who made it does, the chromatograms, the calibration and maintenance records, the bench notes, the breath-test logs, and the toxicology reports, and I look for the gap between what the data really supports and what the report claims. From there the work is concrete: motions to suppress the stop, the arrest, or the sample; motions in limine to keep out an unreliable test or an overstated opinion; a cross-examination of the breath, blood, or toxicology analyst built on their own records; and an expert strategy that lines up the right defense expert. At trial, I can take the forensic witnesses while you carry the rest.
Serious and Forensic DUI
The cases where this matters most are the serious ones. DUI manslaughter and DUI with serious bodily injury, breath and blood cases where the number is the whole fight, refusals, drug-DUI and polydrug cases that rest on toxicology, and any DUI where a suppression issue or a forensic challenge could decide it. These files reward someone who knows how the sample was drawn, stored, and tested, where the chain of custody can break, and how a field sobriety or horizontal gaze nystagmus evaluation is supposed to be administered and scored before it means anything. If you have a case like that anywhere in Florida, send it or let us work it together.
Personal Injury Referrals and Co-Counsel
On the civil side, I welcome plaintiff’s personal injury referrals and co-counsel arrangements, including serious-injury crash and premises cases, medical malpractice, nursing home neglect, products liability, and wrongful death, working alongside experienced Florida personal injury trial counsel. You can send a case outright or stay in as co-counsel, and the contingent-fee division rules let a referring lawyer share in the fee with the client’s written consent. If you have an injured client, it is worth a quick call before you decide.
Corporate representative depositions
In premises and negligent security cases I treat the corporate representative deposition, 30(b)(6) practice and its Florida counterpart, as a core part of the workup rather than a formality: often an early deposition on the defendant’s records systems and retention to cut through discovery obstruction, then a liability deposition once the documents are in hand, each noticed on carefully framed topics and used to bind the defendant to its security and inspection decisions well before mediation. Referring counsel can expect that work to be done personally, and I am glad to talk through how it would fit a case you are evaluating.
How Fees Work
I keep this clean and in writing. On a criminal or other non-contingency matter, any division of fees follows Florida Bar Rule 4-1.5(g), which calls for the client’s written consent and a reasonable total fee. On a contingency personal injury matter, a referral fee is handled under the contingent-fee division provisions of Rule 4-1.5(f), again with the client’s written consent. We settle the structure before the work starts, so there are no surprises.
What Other Lawyers Say
“Very impressed with Rory’s dedication to criminal defense, especially his commitment to understanding DUI cases. As a fellow attorney, he wins my DUI referrals.”Chris Hunt, Attorney at Law
“I refer Rory cases. That’s how much trust I have in him. I’ll put my reputation on the line.”Zarina Hernandez, Z. Hernandez Law
“I have known Rory for a while and have personally seen his work ethic in and outside the courtroom. You are hiring someone who will fight hard for you and for your case. I would highly recommend him to anyone.”Matias Cordoba, Hancock Injury Attorneys
“Rory is a very diligent and down to earth attorney. Very informative and an all-around nice guy.”D. Kay Carr, D. Kay Carr P.A.
Statewide Reach
I am based in St. Petersburg, and my own first-chair criminal practice runs through the Sixth, Thirteenth, and Twelfth Circuits on the Gulf Coast and in Tampa Bay. Referrals and co-counsel are different. For the forensic and serious-case work described here, and for personal injury, I associate with lawyers across the state, and a great deal of the early work, the file review, the motion drafting, and the strategy, can be done remotely before anyone sets foot in a courtroom. Distance is rarely the obstacle.
Start a Conversation
If you have a case in mind, the fastest way to start is to book a time or call. We can talk lawyer to lawyer about the file, what the science looks like, and whether a referral or co-counsel makes more sense, before either of us commits to anything.
Common Questions
Should I refer the case or co-counsel it?
Whichever fits you. If you would rather hand the matter off, I take it as a referral. If you want to stay in and keep your client relationship, we work it together as co-counsel and I bring the forensic side. Many lawyers start with one case as co-counsel and refer the next one outright once they see how it goes.
What kinds of cases are a fit?
On the criminal side, serious or forensic-heavy DUI and impaired-driving cases that turn on breath, blood, or urine testing, suppression, or field sobriety evidence. On the civil side, plaintiff’s personal injury, especially serious-injury crash and premises matters. The common thread is a case where the science, a suppression issue, or the stakes call for a specialist.
How are fees handled?
On a criminal or other non-contingency case, any division follows Florida Bar Rule 4-1.5(g), with the client’s written consent and a reasonable total fee. On a contingency personal injury case, a referral fee is handled under the contingent-fee division provisions of Rule 4-1.5(f), again with written client consent. We confirm the structure in writing before anything moves.
Will you try the case, or only consult?
Either. I can take a full referral, serve as co-counsel through trial, handle a single suppression motion and the hearing that follows, take only the forensic witnesses at trial, or consult quietly behind the scenes. We decide that up front.
Do you take cases across Florida?
Yes. My own first-chair practice is in the Tampa Bay and Gulf Coast circuits, but I accept referrals and co-counsel matters statewide, and much of the early work can be done remotely.
Do you handle personal injury referrals too?
Yes. I welcome plaintiff’s personal injury referrals and co-counsel arrangements, working alongside experienced Florida personal injury trial counsel. A serious-injury case is exactly the kind of matter to send or share.
This page is intended for licensed attorneys and is general information, not legal advice. Any division of fees follows the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, including Rule 4-1.5(g) for non-contingency matters and the contingent-fee division provisions of Rule 4-1.5(f) for personal injury, and requires the client’s informed written consent and a reasonable total fee. Testimonials reflect the experience of the lawyers quoted, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
