Roca

Felicia Santana

Partner / Director Dispute Resolution

Biography

Felicia leads the litigation practice area of ROCA. She has developed her career of more than 20 years of practice exclusively as a litigant. Her contentious experience includes the disciplines of civil, commercial, constitutional, criminal, labor, administrative, real estate, enforcement, civil procedure, criminal procedure, constitutional procedures, and alternative dispute resolution. Numerous litigations in representation of national and foreign banks, companies, commerce and industries have shaped her professional career. Her specialty in the matter of obligations combines daily with claims for damages. Hundreds of defenses or civil liability, labor, breach of contract and criminal actions are headed by Felicia throughout all Dominican courts.

She has participated as a guest speaker in international forums. Felicia was recently responsible for directing the defense and releasing from liability an important international hotel of 17 actions in damages resulting from the alleged fall of an elevator carrying part of the escort of the Dominican president. Recently she freed one of the main companies of the country from two lawsuits that added contingencies of more than one billion Dominican pesos. She has led defense strategies for companies, industries, hotels and insurers for criminal, labor and civil liability actions for claims in damages.

She provides constant legal opinions to one of the main foreign investment banks and other national banks on contingencies, litigious issues and represents them in the processes of forced executions in complex cases for the recovery of millions. She recently collaborated in the due diligence and advice of a major foreign corporation for the acquisition and purchase of financial assets, loan portfolio, including real estate assets and tourism projects. She coordinates the annual representation of hundreds of cases by real estate actions and registered rights.

She successfully assisted in an action for fraud against a shareholder by trying to distract assets in the shareholder´s name; she also assisted in the defense and freed the CEO from all criminal and civil actions filed recklessly against the CEO by the company, by other directors and some shareholders. She has persecuted electronic crimes, aggravated robberies against banking entities, companies and industries. She has been at the head of criminal and civil actions for medical malpractice and collaborated in defense of the actions filed by foreign citizens, victims of an alleged pyramidal fraud.

In recent years she has specialized her practice in constitutional issues and procedures, thru dozens of Appeals in Constitutional Review against decisions issued by the Supreme Court of Justice, as well as in Amparo and Habeas Data actions, successfully claiming fundamental rights of important local companies.

Collaborates in legal opinions and litigation strategies related to breaches of concession contracts registered under the Dominican Law for the Protection of Importing Agents of Goods and Products (Law 173). Felicia recently collaborated in the defense of the interests of an international industry specialized in the manufacture of the most innovative car brand that leads the field of electric vehicles with technology in the market.

 
MEMBERSHIP
  • Member of the Bar Association of the Dominican Republic
 
PUBLICATIONS
  • “Arbitration in the Dominican Republic”, 2010
  • “Forced Execution of Obligations to Do”, 2009
  • “Dissolution of Financial Intermediation Entities”, 2009
  • “The Declinatory Exceptions as Dilatory Measures in Civil Procedure”, 1994
 
Practices
  • Civil
  • Commercial
  • Constitutional
  • Criminal
  • Labor
  • Administrative
  • Enforcement Procedures
  • Civil Procedures
  • Constitutional Procedures
  • Criminal Procedures
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution