Ricardo A.
Barquero

OVERVIEW

Three simple rules guide Ricardo Barquero’s professional and personal life. “My first principle is to love your loved ones,” he says. “The second one is to be good to others, and the third is to give back to your community. These principles don’t just shape my personal life. They define my approach to the legal profession.”

 

A transactional attorney, Ricardo started his legal career in his native Costa Rica. Working both for government agencies and in private practice, Ricardo played key roles in developing infrastructure and clean energy projects, closed deals, and handled general corporate work. His international experience also includes public-private partnerships, foreign investment deals, and work with the World Bank in Washington, D.C. “I was always very interested in working with multilateral development banks, because they were often financing the very projects I was involved in back in Costa Rica,” he says. “I was actually the first Iowa Law student to intern with the World Bank.”

 

His first guiding principle—to love your loved ones—led him to the United States. In 2019, Ricardo and his wife, a U.S. citizen, decided it might be best for their daughters to move to the United States. “Although we had a good life in Costa Rica, we felt moving was the right step for their future,” Ricardo says. After receiving his immigrant visa and relocating to the United States, Ricardo chose to follow his father’s long-standing advice. “My dad always told me that the best investment you can make is in education,” he says. “I felt that if we were going to start a new chapter here, the right thing to do was to go back to law school and become a U.S. attorney.”  

 

In his practice, Ricardo also hones his philosophy of being good to others and giving back. He is collaborative, reliable, and ready to learn. “I believe that working together, sharing ideas, and supporting colleagues lead to the best outcomes,” he says. “For example, my experiences, whether negotiating agreements at the World Bank or volunteering in leadership roles, have strengthened my ability to work with diverse teams.”

 

Client-focused, Ricardo strives to deliver high-quality work in high-pressure situations. “My clients have entrusted me with significant responsibilities,” he says. “I try always to transmit to them that I approach every task with diligence, care, and professionalism.”

 

Ricardo brings extensive international experience to his practice. “I can bring a more international perspective to the law firm not only with my bilingual skills, but also my training and experience in civil law,” he says. “I have training in Spain and Costa Rica, and I have many contacts within the region.”

 

While leveraging his wide-ranging experience, Ricardo always goes back to his core beliefs. “In this profession, experience is our most important asset,” he says, “but the most important thing I’d like my clients to see in me is that I’m a good person because I think that’s the most important value that the legal profession needs.”

 

Across his professional and personal life, Ricardo considers his wife and three daughters to be his greatest strength. The family has made Iowa home. “Iowa is a great place to raise a family,” Ricardo says. “I also became a U.S. citizen here in Des Moines. I consider myself an Iowan through and through because this is the place I decided I wanted to be an American citizen.”

PROFESSIONAL & COMMUNITY AFFILIATIONS

Hispanic National Bar Association

• Co-chair, Special Committee on Foreign-Trained Attorneys Section, 2021–2022
• Vice chair, Foreign-Trained Attorney Section, 2022–2024
• Business Law Section

 

The Immigration Project

• Volunteer interpreter

 

Ibero-American Association of Regulatory Studies (ASIER)

• Country Representative for Costa Rica, 2008–2010