Our specialists in the Administrative and Regulatory Practice Group advise and represent our clients in their interactions with the State. For clients in regulated markets, our advice is always aimed at effective compliance with State regulations and preventing conflicts with the Administration, to ensure successful development of their legal operations and to minimize the regulatory risks that may arise.
ROCA has advised multinational companies in the negotiation of contracts with the Dominican government for the privatization of the Administration, as well as the collection of municipal taxes in the Dominican Republic. Our team has participated in various administrative authorization processes for clients in regulated sectors and has represented clients in various administrative contentious processes and in public sector contracting and bidding.
Our team advises recognized entities of financial intermediation in a wide range of legal issues. Our attorneys have represented Dominican companies in the structuring of loans with international entities, consolidation of local guarantees and have collaborated For the due diligence and regular formalization of guarantees for multiple projects and financial operations. We have advised foreign investors interested in venturing into the Dominican banking system around regulatory issues in the sector, as well as in various financing transactions.
ROCA is a pioneer in the creation of the legal and contractual framework for the first private electronic factoring market in the Dominican Republic, as well as the legal and corporate structure of the first company dedicated to the factoring of medical bills in our country.
ROCA advises its clients in all aspects of Competition Law, including restrictive business practices, such as price fixing or collusive agreements, as well as abuse of dominant market position, and conflicts arising due to unfair competition issues. Our team continuously guides our clients who venture into mergers and acquisitions, as well as in any process of business integration and processing authorizations before the competent governmental agencies.
The wide diversification of our corporate team allows us to provide our clients with coordinated legal advice from an experienced group of attorneys capable of handling numerous situations arising from corporate transactions, providing our clients with a 360° view of their business. We advise our clients on all issues regarding commercial companies, from the choice of the corporate vehicle, its constitution, maintenance and administration, the establishment of branches of foreign companies, advice on conflicts between partners, and corporate reorganizations. Likewise, we work with the constitution, maintenance and administration of non-profit entities and advice on all aspects of the development of said entities.
Likewise, individuals, entities and industries constantly receive from our attorney’s contractual advice for the ordinary tasks of their commercial activities, as well as for their extraordinary matters in the local and international market. ROCA assists its clients in all types of contracts, providing the necessary advice and support from the beginning of the negotiation process, to ensure the correct contractual design minimizing possible contingencies, until the drafting, review and execution of contracts. Contracts for sales, purchases, options and sales promises, splits, distribution contracts, agency and franchise, contracts to standardize suppliers, tenders, leases, loan to use or loan, leasing, transaction agreement, conflict resolution, international escrows, Non-competition agreements and industrial secrets, among others, are part of a remarkable practice in contractual matters.
Our diverse practice areas allow us to support entrepreneurs and young business people in the different legal challenges they will face in their new business model.
ROCA offers a 360 view to these startups, from intellectual property, labor, taxes, corporate, all the way to civil law. The success stories of the startups are ever more common each day, which is why we adapt to the needs and challenges of each one of our clients in order to support them from the start of this new challenge.
ROCA has extensive experience in the free zone industry, where we are committed to providing our national and international clients with the effective guidance and legal assistance to begin their operations in the Dominican Republic. We also provide advice on labor, tax and social security obligations of companies in free zones and in the closure of their operations. We have represented one of the international largest call centers in the DR, from the structuring and creation of the corporate vehicle, to obtaining all the necessary permits and licenses to operate as a free zone company, exempt from all local taxes, up to the preparation of all labor agreements and registrations, as well as the review of all agreements with service providers and real estate contracts.
Tourism responds to one of the most important sources of national income that the Dominican Republic currently has. As we strive to respond to the ever-changing needs of our clients, we are committed to keeping our team updated in those areas of the law that increasingly have a leading role in our society. Our team is here to provide our clients with the necessary legal guidance in the design and development of tourism businesses, drafting contracts and judicial proceedings in the tourism sector.
Our team provides our clients with the necessary legal guidance for compliance with environmental legislation helping them understand the risks and opportunities available to resolve conflicts over these issues. Our guidance extends to the administrative and regulatory processes necessary before the corresponding authorities, including due diligence processes, to the resolution of the conflicts either by negotiation, arbitration, or litigation.
The firm advises local investors and entrepreneurs about their rights in the energy sector, which is configured as a key sector in the social and economic framework. Our team has advised various companies in the negotiation and drafting of energy distribution contracts in the local market.
For mining exploitation and production, our lawyers provide our clients with the necessary advice and accompany them in the negotiation with state entities, project management and operations.
ROCA has advised national and international companies in relation to franchise agreements for the successful development of businesses in different segments of the economy, including restaurants and gyms of international franchises, such as Smart Fit. Our team accompanies our clients throughout the process, from the negotiation of the business model to the review and signing of franchise agreements.
In ROCA our attorneys specialized in Tax Law are accompanied by tax advisors with extensive experience in accounting matters and business management. The services offered in this practice area include tax advisory and consulting services, tax audits and tax planning for both natural and legal persons, especially in matters of corporate reorganization, including mergers, acquisitions, and splits. It also includes due diligence processes in transactions such as purchase and sale of assets, loans, investments in purchase of shares, among others. Our team represents our clients in diverse tax claims, both in administrative headquarters and before the Courts.
The firm has also led transfer pricing studies for companies linked to its parent company and has collaborated on international tax matters with renowned international firms.
ROCA advises its clients through the entire process of purchase and sale of companies, joint ventures, mergers, restructuring and corporate spin-offs. Our extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions includes one of the largest agreements executed to date in the Dominican Republic: the Tricom case. Our team represented a joint venture made up of two of the most prestigious economic groups, one in North America and one in Central America, in the process of acquiring Tricom, the telecommunications company ranked as # 2 in the Dominican market. After exhausting its restructuring process under Chapter 11 in New York and overcoming the opposition presented by the Central Bank before the telecommunications regulatory body, the firm continued to advise the client in the entire process of corporate reorganization and financial clean-up, including the division of subsidiaries and active companies, as well as the merger of other companies, highlighting the main Dominican cable television company, Tele cable Nacional. It is one of the largest legal and economic movements made in the Dominican Republic to date, involving one of its largest companies.
The firm advises its clients on a variety of real estate related transactions. Our work covers the entire process from due diligence to the drafting of agreements, as well as the design and implementation of the legal structure that best suits each case. ROCA has represented important investors and investment funds in the acquisition of companies whose value depends on the regularization of their real estate assets for projects related to urban development and tourism. We have also participated in the assistance of agro-industrial investors in the acquisition of companies with large extensions of land for the farming of agricultural products. Our team continuously advises Scotiabank on real estate issues and assists in the processes of due diligence, as well as provides advice and support in the bidding processes for the acquisition of renowned professional buildings and commercial plazas located in the economic district of Santo Domingo.
ROCA advises clients regarding the protection and benefits afforded foreign investments under Dominican law. We have coordinated investment transactions through complex acquisitions of financial and credit assets and have assisted foreign clients in the management of investments in bonds for tourism, technology, telecommunications, real estate, cable, banking, and credit portfolios. Our team advised a joint venture formed by two renowned investors in one of the most complex investments verified in a Dominican company, which included making it the controlling creditor, to subsequently promote its restructuring and acquisition of the company, becoming an icon in the Dominican market.
The firm has extensive experience in handling regulatory issues related to the recruitment of local and foreign human capital, mitigating labor contingencies and providing assistance in corporate restructuring. Risk assessment and the drafting of agreements to regulate the exposure of employees to sensitive knowledge and industrial secrets, aspects of non-competition, before and after the beginning of the employment relationship, is part of the support we provide constantly to our clients. The standardization of agreements for the hiring of a wide range of collaborators is also part of our day to day in this practice area.
Apart from the constant advice in this delicate branch, our team accompanies its clients in negotiations for the termination of employment contracts, collective layoffs, as well as design and modification of benefit plans. Likewise, our lawyers have extensive experience representing their clients before the administrative authorities and the labor jurisdiction.
With an exceptional track record in litigation, and with more than 20 years in the Dominican market, ROCA has earned a well-deserved reputation for successfully resolving important litigation cases in various areas of the law. With a team made up of the best litigators, ROCA continuously advises and represents banks and financial intermediation entities- Scotiabank being one of our icon clients- large multinationals, local and foreign capital industries, agro industry and telecommunications companies, as well as to owners of internationally renowned brands. We have also represented several multinational funds in defense of their interests as bondholders in the international stock market.
The team has significant experience in complex litigation cases ranging from bank fraud, high-tech crimes, commercial litigation between / against shareholders and corporate directors, criminal actions, to matters of asset recovery and compliance procedures, cases of civil liability, as well as real estate claims. Their remarkable practice has led them to advise on high profile and avant-garde cases, working hand in hand with our clients to identify risks and design strategies to mitigate them, according to the needs and business realities of each client.
In addition to administrative processes and judicial litigation, our team has extensive experience in alternative dispute resolution, providing our clients with advice from the drafting of the contractual clauses to the mediation and arbitration processes in national and international forums.
Our experience in capital markets and securities regulation includes assistance to investors and issuers in different types of operations, as well as legal advice to investment funds, agreements associated with them, advice on securities issues, listed companies, financial regulation, among others. In addition, ROCA guides regulated agents, such as companies, funds, brokers and asset managers in issues of compliance with current legislation and regulations in the Dominican market.
Our client portfolio is made up of recognized financial intermediation entities and investment funds. ROCA is responsible for creating the legal and contractual structure for the first private electronic factoring market in the Dominican Republic. Likewise, we have represented investment funds in the placement of foreign funds that have made transactions with one of the most important tourism projects developed in the Dominican Republic, Cap Cana.
ROCA has represented numerous corporate clients in aspects concerning the hiring of its foreign human capital, from the structuring of the Labor Agreement to all aspects relating to the immigration process. We accompany and support the executives of large national and international companies from the initial work visa, the registration of the Labor Agreement, the temporary and permanent residence permits for the staff and their family members, to the management of the citizenship process and naturalization. 
ROCA provides advice to its clients in the protection of their most important intangible assets such as Intellectual Property rights in the Dominican Republic and throughout the Caribbean region. With the mission of understanding the needs of its clients and focusing on addressing and solving those needs, the IP team has experienced significant growth in recent years, which has allowed it to assist from startups to big multinational companies owners of the IP portfolios of the most famous brands in the world.
Under a personalized, comprehensive and pragmatic work scheme, the ROCA IP team employs its professional skills to carry out due diligences, obtain registrations, manage and ensure the maintenance of trademarks and patents, as well as the execution of important transactions and litigation to protect customer rights, including:
-Management of brand portfolios of large life sciences and biotechnology companies, ensuring the proper maintenance and protection of their brands;
-Assistance to food and beverage producers and the cosmetic industry in bureaucratic and administrative processes to obtain health permits required to market their products in the country;
-Advice companies in the pharmaceutical sector, as well as energy and electromechanical industries, in the application, processing and maintenance of interesting invention patents, utility models and industrial designs;
-Address and develop strategies that ensure detection and action against infringement of trademarks and patents, as well as the sale of counterfeit products in the country;
-Advise authors and software developers on the proper protection of their copyright, as well as the scope of the agreements that derive from their intellectual creations;
-Represent clients before the administrative and judicial authorities regarding the actions and litigations that arise in relation to their IP rights;
-Ensure the interests of the client are protected when signing and executing agreements and transactions relating to IP rights.
With the purpose of providing support and advice to their clients in their expansion and growth projects, ROCA has a network of professionals throughout the Latin American region, which allows us to serve as strategic allies in the protection and defense of their Intellectual Property rights beyond the Caribbean.
Our Data Protection and Privacy Practice Area provides companies and startups advice on data protection, legal audits of regulatory compliance and personal data protection regulations, as well as guidance in the design and structuring of strategies for the management of their data, helping them achieve a greater control over the responsibility of third-party data management, in line with the local legislation and the GDPR 
Convinced that growth entails a greater social responsibility, day after day we invest hours and we encourage our team to actively collaborate in pro-bono cases handled by the firm. Faced with the needs of the Dominican nation with economic inequalities, we support and assist in their legal needs, the following institutions that work hard in favor of the best causes and the most vulnerable population in our country:
Fundación Dominicana de Desarrollo (FDD) One of the most important non-profit entities in the Dominican Republic, composed of prestigious businessmen and dedicated to fighting poverty by incentivizing the formation of microenterprises through the promotion of entrepreneurship, training and microcredit.
Buckner Dominicana is the operational arm in the Dominican Republic of Buckner International, a global ministry dedicated to the transformation and restoration of the lives of children, seniors and families that live in vulnerable situations, enriching and strengthening their lives through maximizing resources, and developing leadership through Christ-centered values.
One Child Matters is an international child development ministry helping to meet the physical and spiritual needs of children living in extreme poverty in the DR.
True Girl is a non-profit organization that through a series of educational events and resources creates opportunities for the development and strengthening of healthy and close mother and daughter relationships, recognizing the importance of this special connection specially through the teen years.
Pure Freedom is a non-profit organization that guides people to live under God's design for their lives, thus reducing the number of pregnancies and sexual diseases in adolescents, increasing the number of stable marriages and encouraging parent’s involvement in families.
Integridad y Sabiduría, a non-profit organization in the Dominican Republic that seeks to impact contemporary society with the revelation of God through the exposition of His Truth in a clear and convincing way, through the organization of conferences, seminars, talks, audiovisual and literary resources.
Iglesia Bautista Internacional, a non-profit organization that seeks to develop a church without walls, based on the sufficiency of the Scriptures and formed by disciples of intimate communion with God and among themselves, who walk in integrity of heart and with a public testimony that impacts their sphere of influence, until the glory of God covers our land.
The firm represents both creditors and debtors involved in judicial processes of commercial restructuring and liquidation of companies, to achieve during financial difficulties, the operational continuity of companies through restructuring and insolvency processes and the recovery of credits owed. Likewise, our lawyers assist their clients in the negotiations and coordination of cross-border restructuring and insolvency processes.
Our Founding Partner actively participated in the review and comments to Law 141-15, through the Amcham DR Legal Committee, and has given workshops and trainings on the application of this Law to recognized companies in the DR.
In our Telecommunications, Media & Technology Practice Area, our team advises our clients regarding the regulatory framework in this sector, concerning all aspects of the Law, including the radio spectrum, concessions and authorizations, as well as the defense of competition. Our attorneys provide the necessary guidance and support in all our clients’ transactions
ROCA has had an active participation in the telecommunications sector, having been part of major changes and challenges that this industry has faced in recent years with the mergers and acquisitions produced, in which our lawyers have served as legal advisors and strategic allies of important companies in the sector.
The accelerated development of the telecommunications, media and technology market today forces us to keep innovating and be aware of the technological changes that the industry is going through. ROCA has been characterized by providing its clients with legal advice that allows them to be at the forefront of the economic and administrative changes that have shaped the world of telecommunications.
