[3] After seven years of academic life, Ribeiro entered into private practice in 1979, and quickly established himself as an expert in admiralty and maritime law.
[4] He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 1990, and is a patron of the Oxford University Commonwealth Law Journal.
[5] As the longest-serving judge of the court, Ribeiro has been involved in numerous important cases, particularly in the area of constitutional law.
These include cases concerning the Right of Abode, sovereign immunity, freedom of speech, and the election process, but also extend to other areas such as maintenance and champerty, the internet, LGBT rights, civil partnerships, employment, medical negligence, and divorce.
[3] In May 2023, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) of the United States Congress suggested the United States government imposing sanctions on Ribeiro to counter the erosion of democratic freedoms in Hong Kong over his handling of Jimmy Lai's national security law case.