< BACK
Adriana Riviere-Badell photo
Adriana Riviere-Badell
Lawyer
Miami
201 South Biscayne Boulevard, Suite 1900
Miami, Florida 33131
+1 305 967 6117
adriana.riviere-badell@kobrekim.com
vCard Download 
Miami
201 South Biscayne Boulevard, Suite 1900
Miami, Florida 33131
+1 305 967 6117
adriana.riviere-badell@kobrekim.com
vCard Download 

Adriana Riviere-Badell is an experienced advocate who focuses her practice on high-profile contentious trust and estate disputes, complex multi-jurisdictional civil litigation and international judgment enforcement and asset recovery, with a focus on Latin America.

Ms. Riviere-Badell has been involved in some of the highest-profile cases in South Florida, including the successful representation of Raoul Weil, the former head of global wealth management at UBS who was acquitted of conspiracy to defraud the IRS, as well as the representation of the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball in its highly publicized suit against Biogenesis.

Before joining Kobre & Kim, Ms. Riviere-Badell practiced at Hunton & Williams LLP, representing clients in complex commercial litigation, securities litigation and antitrust-related matters.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Riviere-Badell was a financial associate with a large accounting firm, where she specialized in fraud investigations, corporate bankruptcy, corporate recovery and related litigation issues.

SERVICES

Admissions

  • Florida
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York
  • 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
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
  • U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) eService
  • United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation

Education

  • University of Miami School of Law, JD
  • University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School, BSE

Languages

  • Spanish
SERVICES

Select Engagements

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

  • Representation of a leading healthcare company in prescription opioid-related lawsuits and investigations pending in multiple jurisdictions across the country and the Opiate Multidistrict Litigation.
  • Representation of the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball in Florida litigation to address tortious interference with contract by persons and clinics distributing performance enhancing substances to Major League Baseball players.
  • Representation in connection with multiple litigations in the New York and Florida state and federal courts, and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida, arising from an alleged breach of a joint venture agreement regarding several real estate investments, involving US $50 million+ in controversy.
  • Representation of a public, global technology company’s board of directors in multiple shareholder class actions in Delaware and Florida alleging breach of fiduciary duty by the board of directors in connection with the approval of a US $2 billion tender offer by Verizon Holdings Inc.

International Judgment Enforcement & Offshore Asset Recovery

  • Representation of Chevron in the successful enforcement of an investment treaty arbitration award against the Republic of Ecuador for US $100 million+ (with interest). Kobre & Kim’s efforts in executing an enforcement strategy, including asset tracing, efforts to identify seizure targets, and the service of numerous discovery requests, culminated in Ecuador’s paying Chevron the entirety of the original award plus interest.
  • Representation of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in enforcing judgments of US $120 million+ against assets and defendants in multiple jurisdictions, including Florida, New York, Ireland, the Cayman Islands, Hong Kong and Singapore. Our work in this matter was profiled on the front page of The Wall Street Journal (September 10, 2011).

Government Enforcement Defense

  • Under the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act of 2016 ("PROMESA"), service as independent investigator to the Special Investigation Committee of the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico to perform a comprehensive review of the factors contributing to Puerto Rico's fiscal crisis.
  • Obtained landmark acquittal on behalf of Raoul Weil, former head of UBS global wealth management and the highest-ranking Swiss banker to stand trial in the U.S., on allegations he conspired with wealthy Americans to hide US $20 billion in secret offshore accounts. Kobre & Kim was brought in as special litigation counsel for the trial in Florida, where the firm’s aggressive cross-examinations of government witnesses and closing arguments played a key role in crippling the government’s case.
  • Representation of a former Credit Suisse banker in prosecution by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, relating to alleged assistance to U.S. taxpayers in evading tax obligations.
  • Representation of multiple executives of a large oil company through multidistrict civil discovery process and related government inquiries.
  • Representation of a chief operating officer of a healthcare facility related to violations of the anti-kickback statute and other healthcare-related violations in which the government has intervened in eight separate qui tam actions.
  • Representation of a senior manager at a large automobile company in response to a DOJ and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation relating to the automaker’s sales data reporting practices.

Trust & Estates Litigation

  • Representation of a wife and daughter in a contentious and multi-jurisdictional guardianship dispute, which evolved into a trust & estates dispute, in an estate valued at US $100 million.
  • Representation of the trustee of a revocable trust in a dispute pending in the Circuit Court for Miami Dade County's Probate Division contesting the validity and funding of the formation instrument.
  • Representation with respect to beneficiaries' entitlement to information with respect to the trust, as well as variation and rectification of the terms of the trust.
  • Advising wealthy Central American family on issues related to cross border implications of a politically motivated prosecution in their home country. The repercussions include an offshore asset freeze.
 
SERVICES

Professional & Community Involvement

  • Cuban American Bar Association, Member
  • Hispanic National Bar Association, Member
  • The Florida Bar Association, International Law Section, Member
  • Steering Committee for the International Litigation & Arbitration Conference, Member (2012-2016)
SERVICES

Publications & Presentations

  • Speaker, "As a Moth is Drawn to the Light, So is a Litigant Drawn to the United States" (American Bar Association Section of International Law Fall Conference, Miami, October 2017)
  • Moderator, "Trust Busting: A Thousand Little Pieces" (iLaw2017, Miami, February 2017)
  • Co-author, "Investigations in the Middle Kingdom: What Florida Lawyers Need to Know About Internal Investigations in the People’s Republic of China" (International Law Quarterly, January 2017)
  • Speaker, "Mock Hearing: Admissibility of Unlawfully Obtained Evidence" (C5 Forum on Fraud, Asset Tracing & Recovery, Miami, October 2016)
  • Co-author, "Guardianship: Strategies for Minimizing Risk" (Family Office Exchange, September 2016)
  • Co-author, “Minimizing Discovery Cost through Effective Trial Strategy” (Today's General Counsel, August 2016)
  • Speaker, "Women on Boards of Directors" (The Florida International Bankers Association, Miami, April 2016)
  • Moderator, "Cross-Border Recognition of Insolvency Proceedings" (International Litigation, Arbitration & Transactions Conference, Miami, February 2016)
  • Co-author, "Aspects of the Failed US Department of Justice Prosecution of Ex-UBS Senior Executive Raoul Weil" (Gore-Browne on Companies Special Release, 2015)
  • Co-author, "Pitfalls to Avoid in Making Proposals for Settlement" (Class Act, University of Miami School of Law, Spring 2011)
  • Author, "527s: The New Frontier for Election Law and Associational Rights" (University of Miami Law Review, 2006)
SERVICES

Credentials

Admissions

  • Florida
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York
  • 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
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas
  • U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) eService
  • United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation

Education

  • University of Miami School of Law, JD
  • University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School, BSE

Languages

  • Spanish

Engagements

Commercial Litigation and Arbitration

  • Representation of a leading healthcare company in prescription opioid-related lawsuits and investigations pending in multiple jurisdictions across the country and the Opiate Multidistrict Litigation.
  • Representation of the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball in Florida litigation to address tortious interference with contract by persons and clinics distributing performance enhancing substances to Major League Baseball players.
  • Representation in connection with multiple litigations in the New York and Florida state and federal courts, and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida, arising from an alleged breach of a joint venture agreement regarding several real estate investments, involving US $50 million+ in controversy.
  • Representation of a public, global technology company’s board of directors in multiple shareholder class actions in Delaware and Florida alleging breach of fiduciary duty by the board of directors in connection with the approval of a US $2 billion tender offer by Verizon Holdings Inc.

International Judgment Enforcement & Offshore Asset Recovery

  • Representation of Chevron in the successful enforcement of an investment treaty arbitration award against the Republic of Ecuador for US $100 million+ (with interest). Kobre & Kim’s efforts in executing an enforcement strategy, including asset tracing, efforts to identify seizure targets, and the service of numerous discovery requests, culminated in Ecuador’s paying Chevron the entirety of the original award plus interest.
  • Representation of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in enforcing judgments of US $120 million+ against assets and defendants in multiple jurisdictions, including Florida, New York, Ireland, the Cayman Islands, Hong Kong and Singapore. Our work in this matter was profiled on the front page of The Wall Street Journal (September 10, 2011).

Government Enforcement Defense

  • Under the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act of 2016 ("PROMESA"), service as independent investigator to the Special Investigation Committee of the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico to perform a comprehensive review of the factors contributing to Puerto Rico's fiscal crisis.
  • Obtained landmark acquittal on behalf of Raoul Weil, former head of UBS global wealth management and the highest-ranking Swiss banker to stand trial in the U.S., on allegations he conspired with wealthy Americans to hide US $20 billion in secret offshore accounts. Kobre & Kim was brought in as special litigation counsel for the trial in Florida, where the firm’s aggressive cross-examinations of government witnesses and closing arguments played a key role in crippling the government’s case.
  • Representation of a former Credit Suisse banker in prosecution by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, relating to alleged assistance to U.S. taxpayers in evading tax obligations.
  • Representation of multiple executives of a large oil company through multidistrict civil discovery process and related government inquiries.
  • Representation of a chief operating officer of a healthcare facility related to violations of the anti-kickback statute and other healthcare-related violations in which the government has intervened in eight separate qui tam actions.
  • Representation of a senior manager at a large automobile company in response to a DOJ and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation relating to the automaker’s sales data reporting practices.

Trust & Estates Litigation

  • Representation of a wife and daughter in a contentious and multi-jurisdictional guardianship dispute, which evolved into a trust & estates dispute, in an estate valued at US $100 million.
  • Representation of the trustee of a revocable trust in a dispute pending in the Circuit Court for Miami Dade County's Probate Division contesting the validity and funding of the formation instrument.
  • Representation with respect to beneficiaries' entitlement to information with respect to the trust, as well as variation and rectification of the terms of the trust.
  • Advising wealthy Central American family on issues related to cross border implications of a politically motivated prosecution in their home country. The repercussions include an offshore asset freeze.

News

Professional & Community Involvement

  • Cuban American Bar Association, Member
  • Hispanic National Bar Association, Member
  • The Florida Bar Association, International Law Section, Member
  • Steering Committee for the International Litigation & Arbitration Conference, Member (2012-2016)

Publications & Presentations

  • Speaker, "As a Moth is Drawn to the Light, So is a Litigant Drawn to the United States" (American Bar Association Section of International Law Fall Conference, Miami, October 2017)
  • Moderator, "Trust Busting: A Thousand Little Pieces" (iLaw2017, Miami, February 2017)
  • Co-author, "Investigations in the Middle Kingdom: What Florida Lawyers Need to Know About Internal Investigations in the People’s Republic of China" (International Law Quarterly, January 2017)
  • Speaker, "Mock Hearing: Admissibility of Unlawfully Obtained Evidence" (C5 Forum on Fraud, Asset Tracing & Recovery, Miami, October 2016)
  • Co-author, "Guardianship: Strategies for Minimizing Risk" (Family Office Exchange, September 2016)
  • Co-author, “Minimizing Discovery Cost through Effective Trial Strategy” (Today's General Counsel, August 2016)
  • Speaker, "Women on Boards of Directors" (The Florida International Bankers Association, Miami, April 2016)
  • Moderator, "Cross-Border Recognition of Insolvency Proceedings" (International Litigation, Arbitration & Transactions Conference, Miami, February 2016)
  • Co-author, "Aspects of the Failed US Department of Justice Prosecution of Ex-UBS Senior Executive Raoul Weil" (Gore-Browne on Companies Special Release, 2015)
  • Co-author, "Pitfalls to Avoid in Making Proposals for Settlement" (Class Act, University of Miami School of Law, Spring 2011)
  • Author, "527s: The New Frontier for Election Law and Associational Rights" (University of Miami Law Review, 2006)

“Adriana is an exceptional attorney. Her command of the facts, rule of law, ability to respond calmly and clearly, and advocate zealously is impressive."

- Chambers & Partners