News & Resources

Section 1031.01(b)(11) of Puerto Rico’s Internal Revenue Code, as amended, exempts from income those severance payments that an employer makes to an employee on account of the employee’s separation for service without making a determination of just cause, provided such payments do not exceed the maximum amount payable under Law 80 of May 30, 1976, as amended. For more information, click on the following link: Click here

By: Fernando Goyco-Covas The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 grants certain United States federal income tax benefits to taxpayers that invest all or a portion of their capital gains in certain economically distressed areas of the United States (“Qualified Opportunity Zones”). For more information, please click on the following link: https://www.pmalaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Newsletter-Qualified-Opportunity-Zones.pdf

PMA founding partner Néstor Méndez becomes the first Puerto Rican elected to the Board of Trustees of the US Supreme Court Historical Society.  He also was the first Puerto Rican to preside the Foundation of the Federal Bar Association and Chair its Fellows and currently presides the Puerto Rico Supreme Court Foundation. For more information, click on the following link: Primer Puertorriqueño en presidir junta jurídica El Nuevo Día 6 21 18

The trust is an autonomous estate that results from the act by which a person, named as settlor, transfers certain assets or rights to another person, named as trustee, to be administered for the benefit of third parties, named as beneficiaries, according to the provisions of the deed of constitution of trust.  For more information, click on the following link: Click here

In Caballer Rivera v. Nidea Corporation, 199 DPR __ , 2018 TSPR 65 (April 19, 2018), the Puerto Rico Supreme Court held that an employer’s managers and supervisors are not personally liable for alleged acts of retaliation under Puerto Rico Acts No. 69 of July 6 (sex discrimination), 1985 and No. 17 of April 22, 1988 (sexual harassment), (the “Acts”). For more information, click on the following link: Click here

April 3, 2018. On April 2, 2018, the US Supreme Court held in Encino Motorcars, LLC v. Navarro et al. that service advisors at car dealerships are exempt from the payment of overtime under Section 13(b)(10)(A) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), which applies to “any salesman, partsman, or mechanic primarily engaged in selling or servicing automobiles, trucks, or farm implements.” For more information, click on the following link: Click here

On March 21, 2018, Governor Ricardo Rosselló provided some details about a new Labor Law Reform.  The new Labor Law Reform proposes to lower, on a still unspecified date, the vacation and sick leave accrual of private employees to 7 days per year.  In three years from the enactment of the Reform, the Christmas bonus will not be obligatory and Act 80 of May 30, 1976, the Unjust Dismissal Act, will be eliminated. The purpose of these proposed changes is to increase the rate of labor participation in Puerto Rico, which is currently around 40%, compared to an average of 63% in the US. You can view the article by clicking on the following link:  Click here to download  

Act 93 of August 8, 2017 (“Act 93”), which is effective immediately, amends Act 185- 2014, as amended, known as the Puerto Rico Private Equity Funds Act (“Act 185”), to clarify the scope and meaning of certain provisions in accordance with its legislative history of facilitating entrepreneurship and the deployment of private capital in Puerto Rico. The principal changes introduced by Act 93 deal with certain defined terms, eligibility requirements, and tax deductions related to an investment in a private equity fund (each, a “Fund”) under Act 185. You can view the complete article by clicking on the following link: Click here 

Recent legislation will accelerate much-needed power, road, and water infrastructure projects – meanwhile, law firms are winning more work from clients that have relocated to Puerto Rico.

On June 20, 2017, the Disbursement Authorization and Tax Concession Committee (the “Committee”) issued Resolution 2017-05 (the “Resolution 2017-05”) establishing rules to limit the use of Granted Credits
for the tax year 2017 and subsequent years.