Biography
Ricardo J. Casellas-Santana has served as lead counsel in bench and jury trials before Puerto Rico’s federal and local courts. His practice focuses on high-stakes commercial disputes, distribution and franchising matters, antitrust, and environmental litigation. He also advises companies on how to structure distribution and franchise relationships and prevent disputes under Puerto Rico’s Dealer and Sales Representative Acts (Laws 75 and 21). Drawing on his background in physics and economics, he approaches each case methodically, distilling complex disputes into manageable parts and shaping strategies that position his clients for success.
Before joining the firm, Mr. Casellas clerked for the Hon. Jay A. García-Gregory and the late Hon. Salvador E. Casellas at the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, and served as a student clerk for the Hon. Juan R. Torruella at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. These experiences offered a close view of judicial decision-making and refined the clarity and precision that distinguish his written advocacy.
Mr. Casellas’ recent work includes leading the trial team that secured a multimillion-dollar judgment for a condominium association in a landmark Hurricane María insurance case, serving as co-lead counsel in a complex insurance recovery action involving more than 140 properties across the island, and representing a technology company in a federal bench trial under the Federal Arbitration Act involving arbitration and contract formation issues.
Beyond his courtroom practice, Mr. Casellas regularly advises businesses on establishing and maintaining distribution and sales relationships, including negotiating agreements and addressing compliance under Puerto Rico’s Dealer and Sales Representative laws (Laws 75 and 21). He brings the same focus to counseling as he does to trial work, helping clients build strong partnerships and safeguard their interests with sound judgment and practical foresight.
Mr. Casellas is recognized in The Best Lawyers in Puerto Rico for his work in competition and antitrust law. He also serves on the board of the Federal Bar Association’s Hon. Raymond L. Acosta Puerto Rico Chapter, where he works to strengthen connections between the bench and the bar.
- Led O&B’s trial team to a $4+ million judgment for a condominium association after the insurer undervalued Hurricane María damages. The court’s 110-page post-trial opinion resolved several issues of first impression under Puerto Rico law, holding that extrapolated damages were admissible as circumstantial evidence and that coverage applied under an Ordinance or Law endorsement. The court credited the condominium’s experts as fully credible and rejected the opposing expert’s testimony as unreliable. Consejo de Titulares del Condominio de Diego 444 v. MAPFRE Praico Insurance Company, Case No. SJ2019CV09012.
- Represented a medical technology company in a toxic tort putative class action litigation involving alleged community exposure to ethylene oxide emissions from a sterilization facility in Puerto Rico. Successfully obtained dismissal of all claims against the client at the pleadings stage. Pérez-Maceira v. Customed, Inc., Civil No. 23-1445 (CVR) (D.P.R. 2025).
- Represented a healthcare technology company in a long-running dispute with a physician alleging data loss from an electronic medical records system and challenging the enforceability of an arbitration clause. Obtained dismissal of the parent holding company in the First Circuit for lack of personal jurisdiction. On remand, the district court conducted a trial under Section 4 of the Federal Arbitration Act to resolve whether an arbitration agreement existed. During that proceeding, Mr. Casellas conducted the direct examination of Allscripts’ corporate representative and principal witness, whose testimony the trial court credited over the physician’s account, leading to a victory for Allscripts. Rodríguez-Rivera v. Allscripts Healthcare, LLC, 43 F.4th 150 (1st Cir. 2022); Rodríguez-Rivera v. Allscripts Healthcare, LLC, 2025 WL 71692 (D.P.R. 2025).
- Represented Plaintiffs pro bono in a highly publicized case involving novel civil rights issues. There, the Plaintiffs (parents of an infant removed from their custody for alleged neglect) asserted due process and equal protection violations due to inadequate English-language services provided by the Puerto Rico Department of the Family. As part of the trial team at O&B, Mr. Casellas secured preliminary injunctive relief and contempt of court orders against the Puerto Rico Department of the Family. Osuji v. Departamento de la Familia, 2021 WL 4438085 (D.P.R. 2021).
- Successfully defended a pharmacy benefit manager in litigation filed by the Government of Puerto Rico in local court challenging pharmacy benefit and drug-pricing practices under Puerto Rico antitrust and consumer-protection laws. After removing the case to federal court under the federal officer removal statute, the district court remanded to the Puerto Rico Court of First Instance. On appeal, the First Circuit reversed, holding on an issue of first impression in the circuit that removal was proper for PBMs administering the TRICARE federal health program. Government of Puerto Rico v. Express Scripts Inc., 119 F.4th 174 (1st Cir. 2024).
- Obtained summary judgment dismissing all claims against employer, with the First Circuit affirming that the employer was not liable for age or disability discrimination in a reduction-in-force context. Lahens v. AT&T, 28 F.4th 325 (1st Cir. 2016).
- Successfully represented a global medical technology company in antitrust litigation under Puerto Rico’s Monopoly Act involving claims of market monopolization and price discrimination. The matter presented novel legal issues and concluded with a favorable settlement.
- Successfully represented multiple financial institutions in securing the dismissal of consolidated federal class actions before the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, challenging mortgage lending and servicing practices under various federal consumer protection statutes, including TILA, RESPA, and ECOA. The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the dismissals.
- Obtained summary judgment for Medicare Advantage insurer in a challenge to a Puerto Rico Treasury Department directive that conflicted with federal Medicare and Medicaid requirements. The court held that the directive was preempted by federal law governing Medicare Advantage and Medicaid managed-care plans and was invalid as an unauthorized attempt to tax and regulate federally governed health-care programs. Medicaid & Medicare Advantage Products Ass’n of P.R. v. Emanuelli-Hernández, Civil No. 22-1297 (PAD) (D.P.R. 2024).
- Assisted several brokerage firms in successfully resolving over 30 arbitration securities claims following the 2013 Puerto Rico bond market collapse.
- Obtained several orders compelling arbitration in multi-million-dollar securities fraud cases against a broker-dealer following the Puerto Rico bond market collapse in 2013. Méndez-Campoamor et al. v. UBS Financial Services of Puerto Rico Inc., Civil No. 3:18-cv-01656; Rojas Franqui et al. v. UBS Financial Services of Puerto Rico Inc., Civil No. 3:18-cv-01479.
- Obtained denial of preliminary injunctive relief and later full dismissal of §1983 and EMTALA claims brought against a hospital. Gonzalez-Trápaga v. Mayagüez Medical Center Dr. Ramon Emeterio Betances, Inc. et al., Civil No. 15-cv-01342 (DRD).
- Drafted a successful brief in opposition to a petition for certiorari in an ERISA case before the U.S. Supreme Court. Guerra Delgado v. Popular Inc., Case No. 14-1170 (U.S. Supreme Court, cert. denied June 1, 2015)