Angel Berberena is a Capital Member of the Firm with over 25 years of experience as a practicing trial attorney in general, commercial and labor/employment litigation. Substantial experience in multimillion-dollar and complex litigation cases.
Experience in construction, real estate, retail, healthcare, insurance, food/beverage, financial/legal services, and pharmaceutical industries. Commercial experience includes litigation, arbitration and mediation involving breach and interpretation of contracts; corporate and partnership disputes including valuation, stock and asset purchases, due diligence, dissolutions, violations to corporate or partnership agreements, and breach of fiduciary duty; insurance and financial claims including coverage, payment and collections; damages and personal injury.
Focus on labor and employment includes all areas of labor/employment law and personnel practices including wrongful termination, workplace/sex harassment, bullying, discipline, disability, accommodation, leaves, employee benefits and compensation, discrimination (race, sex, color, national origin, religion, age, and marriage, orientation and others), affirmative action, retaliation, privacy, protective orders, wage and hour, leaves of absence, ERISA, OSHA, domestic violence in the workplace, executive employment contracts, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), labor reform, independent contractor disputes, misclassification, special employment covenants (non-compete, non-solicitation, IP transfers, etc.), separation agreements, maternity, retaliation, Title VII, whistleblower, workplace investigations, reductions in force, reorganizations and closings.
Active litigation, arbitration and mediation before local and federal administrative and judicial forums, including the Federal Court for the District of Puerto Rico, Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, Puerto Rico Supreme Court, Puerto Rico Court of Appeals, Puerto Rico Court of First Instance, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), United States Department of Labor (US-DOL), Puerto Rico Anti-discrimination Unit (PR-ADU), Puerto Rico Department of Labor (PR-DOL), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA and PR-OSHA), and other administrative agencies.
Regular lecturer on legal and labor/employment topics, including compliance and training.
Bar Admissions
- Puerto Rico, 1999
- U.S. District Court District of Puerto Rico, 2000
- U.S. Court of Appeals 1st Circuit, 2000
Education
- University of Puerto Rico Law School, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- J.D. - 1998
- Honors: cum laude
- University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez Campus, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
- B.S. - 1995
- Honors: cum laude
- Major: Finance
Classes/Seminars
- Labor & Employment; Adecco/NBI/National Retail; 1999 - 2008
- Corporate and Practical Training; Inhouse; 1999 - 2008
Professional Associations and Memberships
- Private Arbitrator and Mediator, 2007.
- Colegio de Abogados de Puerto Rico; Member; 1990 - 2008.
- Certified Arbitrator, American Arbitration Association, 2019.
- American Bar Association; 1999 - 2008.
- Hispanic National Bar Association, 2011.
- Interamerican Bar Association, 2002-Present.
- Member and frequent speaker, Association of Labor Relations Practitioners, 1999.
- Member and Speaker, National Finance Industry Employment Law Committee (NFIELC) 2017.
Pro Bono Activities
- General Pro Bono Litigation; 1998 - 2008
Languages
- Spanish
- English