Attorney Eric S. Ruff
Eric S. Ruff
Dedicated Bankruptcy Attorney in Gainesville & Jacksonville
Eric S. Ruff attended law school at the University of Florida, where he was a member of the Law Review. He graduated from law school with honors in 1979 and soon afterwards was employed as an attorney at Trinkle & Redman in Plant City, where he handled a wide variety of cases including appeals and bankruptcy cases. In 1985, he returned to Gainesville to establish his own law firm, concentrating on bankruptcy law. Today, Ruff & Cohen is known as a respected and trusted source of counsel in bankruptcy matters.
As an appellate lawyer Mr. Ruff prevailed in appeals in Florida District Courts of Appeals and before the Florida Supreme Court. He has also prevailed in appellate cases in the Federal court system at the U.S. District Court level and at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Atlanta. (The only court higher than a U.S. Court of Appeals is the U.S. Supreme Court itself).
Awards & Recognition
In 2015, the most respected attorney rating company of all, Martindale-Hubbell®, gave Mr. Ruff their very highest attorney rating of "AV Preeminent®", with a Peer Review score of 5 out of a possible 5—given to fewer than 5% of attorneys. Earlier, in 2013, Martindale-Hubbell awarded Mr. Ruff the "Client Distinction Award" for holding a perfect 5 client review score. According to American Registry, less than 1% of the 900,000+ attorneys listed in martindale.com and lawyers.com have been accorded this distinction.
- Mr. Ruff’s recognitions include:
- AV Preeminent® (highest attorney rating) by Martindale-Hubbell®, nation’s oldest attorney rating company.
- 10 out of 10 Superb Rated Bankruptcy Attorney on Avvo.com
- 35 Years of Service Recognition by Martindale-Hubbell®
- Client Distinction Award by Lawyers.com
- Clients’ Choice Award for Bankruptcy on Avvo.com
Mr. Ruff’s work also contributed to Ruff & Cohen being named as a "Top 100 Bankruptcy Law Firm" by Laws.com.
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Appellate Cases
In his decades of service as a Gainesville bankruptcy attorney, Mr. Ruff has represented a multitude of satisfied clients and filed over 3,000 bankruptcy cases. But Mr. Ruff also enjoyed significant success as an appellate lawyer, handing cases on appeal from trial courts to higher courts. Listed below are the reported decisions in Florida state courts in which Eric Ruff was the appellate lawyer.
Mr. Ruff’s clients prevailed in each of the reported cases, the majority of which were reversals of a trial court decision, including one case that went as far as the Florida Supreme Court:
- Williams v. Feather Sound, Inc., 386 So.2d 1238 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980) (negligent hiring; reversal),
- Kent v. Connecticut Bank and Trust Co. NA, 386 So.2d 902 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980) (slander and punitive damages; reversal),
- Hall Truck Sales, Inc. v. Wilder Mobile Homes, Inc., 402 So.2d 1299 (Fla. 2d DCA 1981), pet. for rev. den., 412 So.2d 471 (1982) (UCC - implied warranties; reversal),
- Miley v. Miley, 402 So.2d 557 (Fla. 2d DCA 1981) (real property - reformation of agreement for deed; reversal),
- Revels Ford Tractor Co., Inc. v. Meares, 419 So.2d 1190 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982) (civil procedure - compulsory counterclaims; reversal),
- Icard v. Henderson, 455 So.2d 417 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984) (construction contracts - obligation to pay for extras and prejudgment interest; reversal in part and affirmance in part, both in client's favor), and
- Meares v. Revels Ford Tractor Co., Inc., 456 So.2d 1339 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984) (sales - reformation of contracts; affirmance in client's favor as against individual defendants, reversal as to corporate defendant).
In addition, Mr. Ruff has prevailed on appeal in unreported cases at the Federal District Court level and even at the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. (The only court above a Federal Circuit Court of Appeals is the U.S. Supreme Court itself.)
Law Memberships & Associations:
State Bar Association:
- Florida Bar
Federal Bar Associations:
- United States District Court for Northern District of Florida
- United States District Court for Middle District of Florida
- United States District Court for Southern District of Florida
Bankruptcy Bar Associations:
- Bankruptcy Bar Association for the Northern District of Florida
- Jacksonville Bankruptcy Bar Association
State and County Bar Associations:
- Eighth Judicial Circuit Bar Association
- Clay County Bar Association
- Hillsborough County Bar Association
- Chairman of the East Committee of the Hillsborough County Bar Association
National Bankruptcy Attorney Associations:
- National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys
