DIEGO M. PESTANA
DIEGO M. PESTANA
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Since joining the Suarez Law Firm, Diego has worked on a variety of complex criminal and civil matters:
- Government and internal investigations
- Healthcare fraud
- Wire fraud
- Securities litigation
- False Claims Act cases
- Employment-defense litigation
- Construction litigation
- University disciplinary appeals
- Federal appeals
- DUI defense
- Employment and separation agreements
Diego is also a volunteer attorney for the Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program and the Institute for Justice.
Diego is a native of the greater Tampa Bay area, having grown up in Spring Hill. After briefly attending the University of Tampa, he obtained his undergraduate degree from Saint Leo University. During college, Diego was a member of University of Tampa’s men’s soccer team as well as Saint Leo University’s men’s soccer team. He was a member of the 2009 UT men’s soccer team that won the Sunshine State Conference. And he was a member of the 2013 Saint Leo men’s soccer team that won the Sunshine State Conference.
Diego graduated cum laude from Stetson University College of Law, where he concentrated in advocacy. He was awarded the Victor O. Wehle Award for excellence in trial advocacy. And he was awarded the E. Harris Drew Memorial Award for dedication to the law and ability to express thoughts orally and in writing. He earned highest-grade designations in Trial Advocacy, Negotiation & Mediation, and Federal Courts. He also excelled in White Collar Crime taught by Professor Ellen S. Podgor. Diego participated in a Study Abroad course entitled Comparative Trial Advocacy at the University of Oxford in England. Diego was an associate of Stetson Law Review and a member of the Moot Court Board. He competed in the Robert Orseck Moot Court Competition (where he argued before the Florida Supreme Court), the National Veterans Law Moot Court Competition, and the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition (the oldest and largest moot court competition in the world).
Fax :(813) 229-0040
Professional and Civic Activities
Tampa Hispanic Bar Association
- Board of Directors, 2020-present
- Young Lawyers Division Co-Chair, 2021-present
Judicial Nominating Commission, Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (Governor appointee)
- Member, 2022-present
Eleventh Circuit Historical Society
- Member, 2022-present
Hillsborough County Bar Association
- Criminal Law Section Co-Chair, 2022-present
- Bar Leadership Institute, 2021-2022
Knights of Columbus
- Deputy Grand Knight, Epiphany of Our Lord Catholic Church Council
Ancient Order of Hibernians
- President, Pinellas Division 2
- State Legal Counsel
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Advisory Board, The Champion, 2022-present

Bar Admissions
- Florida
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
- U.S. District Court, District of Colorado
Presentations and Publications
06.2022
Moderator, Getting Hired in Tampa Bay, Tampa Hispanic Bar Association (June 2022)
11.2021
Moderator, Solo but Not Alone, Tampa Hispanic Bar Association (November 2021)
07.2021
07.2021
Moderator, Judicial Panel, HCBA State Court Trial Webinar (June 2021)
02.2021
2020
2018
10.2018
02.2016
Previous Experience
Law Clerk to the Honorable Kathryn Kimball Mizelle (2021)
Assistant Public Defender, Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (2020)
Law Clerk to the Honorable Michael P. Allen (2019-2020)
Law Clerk to the Honorable Amanda Arnold Sansone (2017-2019)



