Ricardo Cestero is best known for developing creative strategies and winning arguments for his clients—celebrities, athletes, and sports and entertainment companies—in a wide range of entertainment-related disputes and lawsuits. Ricardo’s practice also extends beyond the entertainment industry to complex commercial litigation involving partnership, contract, and real estate disputes.

Ricardo has particular expertise in First Amendment issues, such as defamation and restraint of speech, as well as extensive experience handling motion picture and television production and distribution disputes and profit participation cases. Over the years handling these types of disputes, Ricardo has built a reputation for delivering exceptional legal work. But rarely does he find that a case fits neatly into a particular box or set of legal precedents.

“Every case has its own set of facts, both good and bad. My job is to uncover and highlight the good facts,” explains Ricardo. “You have to look at a case from all different angles in order to present the good facts in a way that appeals to the judge or jury and that the other side doesn’t expect.”

Many of Ricardo’s client relationships start with litigation, but evolve into more general legal advice. They call on him to review and advise on a variety of business matters, including reviewing or drafting contracts and counseling on business deals.

“Clients appreciate that I look at their deals and documents like a litigator. They like that I can see the things that could go wrong, things that could land them in litigation again. This type of proactive counsel results in fewer headaches and wasted resources down the road.”

An amateur musician and avid sports fan and participant, Ricardo set his sights on establishing an entertainment litigation practice after law school. Looking for a sophisticated litigation practice in a mid-sized law firm with a collegial culture, he joined Greenberg Glusker as a first-year associate. And the rest, as they say, is history.