Biography
Alejandro A. Santiago-Martínez is a Member of the Litigation Department, focusing his practice on civil and commercial litigation. His expertise encompasses contractual disputes, franchise and distribution law, construction, insurance, intellectual property, class actions, environmental law, torts, and securities litigation. Alejandro has significant experience representing a diverse range of clients on both the plaintiff and defendant sides in complex commercial disputes before Puerto Rico’s state and federal courts, as well as in administrative proceedings and appellate courts.
His practice includes representing companies from various sectors such as construction, waste management, automotive, financial and insurance institutions, healthcare, and real estate, among others. Alejandro adopts a client-centered approach aimed at achieving the most efficient and effective outcomes. To this end, he has extensive experience in employing alternative dispute resolution methods, including arbitrations, mediations, and proceedings before Court-mandated Special Masters. This approach has led to multiple multi-million-dollar awards and settlements in favor of his clients.
Prior to joining private practice, Alejandro clerked for the former Chief Judge of the Puerto Rico Court of Appeals, Hon. Migdalia Fraticelli-Torres. While pursuing his LL.M. in Washington, D.C., he served as a Research Assistant at Georgetown University Law Center focusing on capital markets and derivatives regulation and worked in the Enforcement Division of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission through its Honors Program.
- Counsel to a principal in federal litigation involving distributor rights and injunctive relief under Puerto Rico’s Dealer Act (Act 75); the court recommended denial of the dealer’s preliminary injunction after a multi-day evidentiary hearing.
- Secured a Puerto Rico Supreme Court ruling reversing both lower courts on post-judgment interest, mandating calculation and payment of interest owed.
- Represented a waste management company and landfill operator in securing dismissal of a complaint alleging misuse of land, operating permits, and related damages.
- Represented a creditor in a complex foreclosure action, obtaining an eight-figure judgment in favor of the client for the deficiency.
- Represented a portfolio of condominium complexes in state court insurance recovery cases stemming from Hurricane María damages. Successfully prosecuted multiple claims at trial, resulting in favorable court judgments and high-value settlements, consistently exceeding insurers’ initial positions.
- Represented a waste management company in a contractual dispute with a municipality, achieving a high six-figure settlement.
- Defended a landfill operator against claims by the Environmental Protection Agency and a municipality in federal court, securing a pre-trial settlement that relieved the client of potential multi-million-dollar liabilities.
- Litigated and negotiated a mid-seven-figure settlement for a higher education institution in Puerto Rico after insurance coverage disputes involving wind versus water sublimits, ensuing-loss provisions, and code-upgrade costs.