Hunton associates Jae Lynn “JL” Huckaba and Jessica Rivero have been named honorees of the 2026 Miami-Dade Bar Circle of Excellence Awards in the Insurance Law and Mergers & Acquisitions areas, respectively. The annual awards recognize the attorneys who “set the standard for skill, integrity, and professionalism in their practice areas” across Miami-Dade County.

“The Circle of Excellence is a recognition by peers who know the Miami-Dade legal community best,” said Scott Merl, chairman of the Circle of Excellence selection committee. “Every honoree on this list earned it through the respect of colleagues, clients, and the public.”  

Huckaba is a member of the firm’s national Insurance Recovery team and focuses her practice on advising policyholders in cross-border insurance coverage disputes and representations and warranties matters. In addition to providing policyholders with advice in complex insurance disputes, she also counsels clients on insurance coverage for political risks and supply chain exposures. Huckaba serves as President-Elect of the Miami-Dade Bar Young Lawyers Section (YLS), sits on the YLS board of directors, and has served as Secretary and Community Service Committee Chair for the YLS.

Rivero represents public and private companies in mergers and acquisitions, bank finance transactions, private offerings of debt, and equity securities throughout the US and Latin America. She also advises commercial and multilateral lenders on a variety of structured and corporate finance transactions impacting the financial services, energy, and hospitality industries, among others. Rivero also maintains an active pro bono practice, is a member of the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project Screening Committee, and routinely advises the American Pediatric Surgical Nurses Association.

Huckaba, Rivero, and their fellow honorees will be celebrated at an awards ceremony at the historic Biltmore Hotel on November 18.

About the Miami-Dade Bar

The Miami-Dade Bar is one of the largest voluntary bar associations in Florida. It serves the legal profession and the public in Miami-Dade County through continuing legal education, professional development, its Lawyer Referral Service, and support of Dade Legal Aid.