ATTORNEYS
Joseph G. Feldstein
Partner
Joseph G. Feldstein, the co-founder of FSA, is a seasoned attorney with over 10 years of legal experience. He has held prominent positions, such as General Counsel for the Puerto Rico Office of Management and Budget and Supervisor of the Legal Department of the Federal Bureau of Prisons in Puerto Rico. Additionally, he was the liaison between the Federal Bureau of Prisons and various State and Federal Agencies in Puerto Rico and the mainland. He also was appointed as Special Assistant United States Attorney.
Joe's diverse legal background includes serving as the Deputy Director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company and Deputy Solicitor General for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, representing the Commonwealth in civil and criminal matters before the Puerto Rico Appellate Courts, United States Federal Courts, and other states or territories of the Union. As an Attorney of the Federal Litigation Division in the Department of Justice of Puerto Rico, he focused on representing the Government of Puerto Rico and its agencies and officials in various civil rights violations and correctional law and litigation matters.
In addition to his litigation experience, Joe has transactional experience in the government sector, enabling him to assist corporate clients in hospitality and tourism, tax incentives, government relations, and other business matters.
Joe's legal career started as a law clerk to the Honorable Federal District Judge Gustavo A. Gelpí, where he focused on employment law and defending claims under various subject matters. Later, he worked at a leading Labor and Employment firm in Puerto Rico, handling employment matters in Federal Court and labor issues.
At FSA, Joe combines his experience in government affairs and public policy with complex business litigation to develop cost-efficient strategic solutions for his clients. His keen knowledge of the government affairs arena and litigation enables him to become the perfect business partner for clients in Puerto Rico.
Zarel Soto-Acabá
Partner
Zarel Soto-Acabá is a co-founder of Feldstein & Soto-Acabá LLC and an accomplished appellate and trial litigator focusing on complex commercial litigation, government affairs, white-collar matters, and government and international corporate internal investigations. Throughout his career, he has successfully represented corporate clients in disputes involving antitrust, securities, multi-district litigation, international business transactions, and contractual matters. Mr. Soto-Acabá has conducted extensive cross-border corporate internal investigations throughout Latin America on various topics, including FCPA matters, conflict of interests, anti-kickback allegations, market collusion, side businesses, bribing schemes, and multiple corporate policy violations.
Mr. Soto-Acabá began his legal career as a Judicial Clerk for the Puerto Rico Court of Appeals before joining the Department of Justice of Puerto Rico as an Assistant Solicitor General. During his time at the DOJ, Mr. Soto-Acabá represented the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico in disputes before the Puerto Rico Supreme Court, the Puerto Rico Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. He gained experience in bidding processes and government procurement, breach of contracts, construction law, extraordinary writs, administrative law, medical malpractice, and criminal matters, among others. He participated in several high-profile cases, including Doral Financial Corp. et al. v. Puerto Rico Treasury Department et al., KLAN 2014-02094; CT-2015-0001(Cert. denied), Obispo de la Diósesis de Arecibo v. Sec. de Justicia, 2014 T.S.P.R. 86, 191 D.P.R., 2015 DTS 089, and Asoc. de Maestros et al., v. Sist. de Retiro, 2015 T.S.P.R. 89.
After serving as in-house corporate litigation counsel at Metro Pavia Health System, Inc, Mr. Soto-Acabá joined the litigation department of Reichard & Escalera, LLC. He gained substantial experience in federal and state court litigation in complex business matters, including high-profile cases such as In re Blue Cross Blue Shield Antitrust Litigation, MDL 2406 (N.D. Ala.), (one of the most prominent antitrust cases in US history), The Bank of New York Mellon v. P.R. Sales Tax Financing Corp., et al., Adv. No.17-00133, and Commonwealth of P.R. v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al., SJ2018CV01659, among others.
Mr. Soto-Acabá later joined Meléndez Torres Law PSC, where he developed a robust international practice conducting corporate internal investigations throughout Latin America in countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Guatemala, and México.
As a co-founder of FSA, Mr. Soto-Acabá continues to provide cost-efficient strategic solutions to clients of all sizes, from Fortune 500 companies to startups and government agencies. His expertise in complex business litigation and government affairs makes him a valuable partner in every aspect of any legal matter.