Rafael Pagan-Colon

Attorney-at-Law, notary, business consultant, information technology professional, executive, and manager with over 15 years’ experience in regulatory contract negotiations, compliance, business administration, business reengineering, project management, managerial consulting, and information technology management. I've issued recommendations that have provided significant economical benefits to for-profit & non-profit organizations. As an experienced public speaker, Rafael has offered seminars and workshops on such topics as powers of attorney, wills, pre-nuptial agreements, project management, risk management, & system development methodologies, among others, throughout Puerto Rico, The Dominican Republic, Mexico, and Venezuela, where he also managed information technology & management consulting projects

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Puerto Rico

Colegio de Abogados y Abogadas de Puerto Rico

ID Number: 19512

Since 2012

Counselor, attorney, notary public

Rafael Pagan, Attorney-at-Law & Notary

2012 - Current

>> Developed a strategic business plan for a Puerto Rico entrepreneur, including 5-year operational budget. Negotiated exclusive representation from Colombian beauty & hair-care firm, granting client exclusive rights to market & sell products in Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, British Virgin Islands, and the United States; Participated in the due diligence audit of a mid-sized cooperative financial institution; revised a portfolio made up of 160 mortgage loans, 21 auto loans, and 19 consumer loans for compliance with United States & Puerto Rico laws and regulations, drafted recommendations based upon the institution’s own lending policy, relevant legislation, and best business practices; Drafted resolution to incorporate profit and non-profit enterprises, defining strategies to procure tax waivers under Federal Tax Code Section 501(c)(3) for a non-profit institution. >> Areas of legal practice: Probate & Family Law, Torts, Contract Negotiations & Administration; Audit & Compliance;

Acting Information Systems Director/Special Aide to the Research & Technology VP

University of Puerto Rico, Central Administration

2006 - 2010

>> Supervised a staff of 42 people and an operational budget of approximately $6,435,000. Team Lead for coordinating the works of the university-wide IT Directors’ Council made up of 11 Campus Information Systems Office Directors; >> Revised and implemented the University’s system-wide Policy on the Ethical Use of Information Technology, along with corresponding standards and procedures; >> Chaired an executive university-wide committee that negotiated and justified a $2.4 Million contract to renew and improve Internet, Internet 2, and Telephone services for an institution of higher learning; duplicating overall Internet bandwidth capacity from 300 Megabits-per-second to 600 Megabits-per-second.

Production Manager, MIS

Suez Lyonnaise/Ondeo Puerto Rico

2002 - 2004

>> Negotiated and implemented a $3 Million purchase to upgrade to an IBM z800 Mainframe and Shark storage technology, financing the 5-month project over 3 years, for a monthly lease $35,000 down from the Data Center’s monthly original operational budget of $155,000; >> Reduced monthly operational power expense of a 3,200 square feet mainframe data center by 48%, achieving $35,000 in monthly savings, down from an initial monthly power expense of $155,000; >> Chaired a CEO-sponsored committee, reporting directly to the CEO, as part of a corporate business process re-engineering effort to identify and recommend business improvements to the company’s Executive Committee; >> Served on infrastructure team to implement a $1.1 Million client server platform to support a corporate-wide SAP implementation project.

Deputy Director, Information Systems

Vivendi Environnement / Puerto Rico Water Company

1997 - 2002

>> Defined a strategic overview for evolving the Information Technology function within the company over the next 10 years. Included budget, policy and organizational changes in the short-, mid- and long-term; >> Administered an $8.5 Million budget to improve communications networks and computing technology to state-of-the-art specifications and implement corporate access to Internet and E-Mail to over 600 people; >> Managed a $4.5 Million budget to lead Year 2000 (Y2K) efforts to successfully implement Mainframe-based Y2K-ready financial and commercial applications. Achieved implementation of the Commercial and Billing application a full month ahead of schedule. All other applications were implemented on time and within budget; >> Redesigned the process by which a public utility corporation acquires and controls consumption of chemical products. Contracted and led efforts to develop a web-based application to run over an Intranet.

Senior Consultant

James Martin & Co., Inc

1992 - 1997

>> Reduced time required by a Health Management Organization to issue 2,000+ W-2 forms from 2 people-weeks to a single day by re-engineering and streamlining the organization’s processes and available technology; >> For a multi-million dollar Venezuelan oil company, led efforts to establish a preliminary information architecture for the company’s gas division. Model encompassed 70 major business functions and close to 120 data types. The architecture was raised within a two-week time frame, working alongside the Vice Presidents of its five major subdivisions: Planning, Marketing, Transmission and Distribution, Engineering, and Processing. Executive Joint Requirements Planning sessions were the primary technique for collecting information supplemented by analysis of the subdivisions goals, critical success factors, and information needs.

University of Puerto Rico - Río Piedras

J.D. (2011) | Law

2007 - 2011

Honors: Cum Laude

University of Phoenix

MBA (2007) | Business Administration, Technology Management

2005 - 2007

Honors: GPA 4.0

University of Puerto Rico - Río Piedras

B.B.A. (1984) | Business Administration, Computer Information Systems

1979 - 1984

Honors: Magna Cum Laude

La Rama Judicial de Puerto Rico  # 18691

Member

Current

Pro Bono, Inc.  # 19512

Lawyer

2020 - Current

Activities: Provide free legal services to low income individuals, through the Puerto Rico Bar College's affiliation with Pro Bono, Inc.

Puerto Rico Notary College  # 4551

Notary

2013 - Current

Activities: Through the College's "Notaries for Puerto Rico" program, provide free notary services to low income persons.

Puerto Rico Bar College (Colegio de Abogados y Abogadas de Puerto Rico)  # 19512

Member

2012 - Current

Activities: Member of the College's Veteran's Affairs Commission since 2013. The Commission provides counseling to veterans of the United States Armed Forces and has worked towards refining and/or proposing legislation that improves quality of life for veterans living on the island.

Quis Custodiat Custodium? Corporate Oversight Through Derivative Action

2 No. 1 U. Puerto Rico Bus. L.J. 35 (2011)

April 15, 2011

Powers of attorney & Wills: Legal Manifestations of the will, Guaynabo, Puerto Rico

2020

Torrimar Methodist Church

Marital Pre-Nups: From Inmutability to Relative Flexibility, San Juan, Puerto Rico

2019

Powers of Attorney: Legal Empowerment of People, Guaynabo, Puerto Rico

2019

Torrimar Methodist Church

Ethical Use of Technology, San Juan, Puerto Rico

2009

University of Puerto Rico, Central Administration

Project Administration & Control, Bayamon, Puerto Rico

2000

Inter American University

Certified Data Professional

American Institute for Certification of Computer Professionals

1987

Q. I hired a contractor to add a new roof to my house. He “ Finished “ the roof doing a horrible job resulting in leaks

November 22, 2024

A: Pursuant to the Contractor Registry Law of 1995, all contractors in Puerto Rico must inscribe in the Department of Consumer Affairs' (DACO) Contractor Registry, plus maintain a performance bond of at least $15,000 to respond for deficiencies in their work.

Your attorney can file a complaint with DACO, investigating the contractor's file to determine whether he/it is in compliance with the Registry and whether or not his/its performance bond is active. As with any legal proceeding, the contractor will need to be served notice of the complaint. DACO will send an inspector to check the work, then issue a report to DACO along with his recommendations regarding what damages, if any, the contractor owes you. Once the report is issued to the parties, each side will have 15 days to challenge the report; after which, the in-depth hearing will be scheduled.

To strengthen your case, you can retain the services of an engineer as an expert witness, and have him/her issue an expert report regarding any existing deficiencies in the contractor's work.

If the contractor is not in compliance with the 1995 Contractor Registry Law, he may be subject to additional administrative fines to be paid to DACO. ... Read More

Q. Terminating a lease

November 20, 2024

A: The answer to your question should be included within the rental contract that you both should've signed. As a rule, most rental contracts have a 30-day advance notice clause for termination of the lease.

If the landlord/landlady attempts to evict, and the leasee is an senior citizen, Article 623 of the Puerto Rico Judgement Code directs the courts to request the Puerto Rico Housing Department (Departamento de la Vivienda), Family Department (Departamento de la Familia), as well as the Elderly Affairs Office (Oficina del Procurador de Edad Avanzada) to submit alternative living arrangements for the senior citizen within 30 days of the court's order.

Q. Hello. Is there a way I can file a small claim against an LLC registered and located in Puerto Rico?

November 20, 2024

A: There is an expedient way to collect an outstanding debt by presenting the debt before the Municipal Court of the city where the debtor resides or operates. Along with a copy of the contract and corresponding invoice, the creditor must also attest as to the attempts made to collect. As a rule, your attorney will send a collection letter by certified mail with receipt certification, as a final attempt. The collection claim must be accompanied by an affidavit, where you state that the claim is true. After which, once the claim is filed, the debtor must be served. 30 days after the court issues a sentence, you can request the court to execute by having marshalls appear at the debtor's premises to collect. If possible, before filing, I suggest procuring a negative certification from the Bankruptcy Court, to make sure that the debtor has not filed. ... Read More