Attorneys in Santo Domingo, practicing across three jurisdictions.
Villar, Sánchez and Poindexter is a boutique firm with offices in Santo Domingo, Raleigh and San Juan. We advise companies, investors, insurers and law firms on Dominican, United States and international law, with a team that knows both systems from the inside.
- Santo DomingoDominican Republic · Principal office
- RaleighNorth Carolina, United States
- San JuanPuerto Rico
Comprehensive legal counsel in the Dominican Republic, with reach into the United States and Puerto Rico
Villar, Sánchez and Poindexter, S.A. (VSP Consultores Legales) is a law firm built on extensive international experience and specialized training. From our principal office in Santo Domingo and our offices in Raleigh and San Juan we advise companies, investors, insurers and institutions on Dominican, United States and international law. VSP Law, PLLC, our sister firm in North Carolina, handles matters that require a presence in the United States.
What sets the firm apart is an uncommon combination of legal practice and operating experience: our partners have founded and run insurers, reinsurers and underwriting agencies, have litigated before Dominican and United States courts, and work daily with affiliated professionals in economics, actuarial science and forensics. The result is counsel that understands the client's business, not just the rule.
Correspondent counsel, Dominican law opinions, exequatur of judgments and awards, and service of process for litigation in the United States and Puerto Rico.
Licensing before the Superintendencia de Seguros, captives, reinsurance treaties, judicial and performance bonds, and claims.
Corporate structuring, investment registration, real estate acquisition, sector permits, residency and capital protection.
Contracting, regulatory compliance, corporate collections, and formation of corporations and LLCs to expand into the United States through IncorporarEnEEUU.com.
A boutique firm that works as a bridge
Lawyers in both systems
Dominican law follows the civil tradition and United States law the common law tradition. A contract, a bond or a judgment that works in one system can fail in the other. Our team drafts, litigates and opines in both without translating between counsel or losing nuance.
Specialists in insurance and surety
Few firms in the region combine law practice with more than thirty years of underwriting. We have formed and run insurers and reinsurers, so we know the Superintendencia de Seguros, reinsurance treaties and surety claims from the perspective of the regulator, the insurer and the insured.
Direct access to the partners
Every matter is handled by a partner, with clear budgets and a response within the same business day. We work in Spanish and English and deliver documents ready for the court, the regulator or the board in whichever language is required.
Practice areas and industries
Corporate and business law
Company formation under Law 479-08, corporate governance, commercial contracts, mergers and acquisitions, reorganizations and counsel through every stage of the company's life.
Foreign investment
Investment structuring, registration with ProDominicana under Law 16-95, sector tax incentives, permits and protection of foreign capital, including repatriation of profits.
Insurance, reinsurance and surety
Licensing before the Superintendencia de Seguros under Law 146-02, treaty and facultative reinsurance, judicial and performance bonds, policy drafting and claims. It is the specialty that defines the firm.
Captive insurers
Design, domiciliation and administration of captives and risk retention vehicles for regional business groups, with actuarial and solvency analysis.
Litigation and arbitration
Representation before Dominican courts and in domestic and international commercial arbitration, exequatur and enforcement of foreign judgments and awards under Law 489-08 and the New York Convention.
Corporate collections
Recovery of commercial debts, conservatory and executory attachments, and enforcement of security for domestic and foreign creditors.
Maritime and customs law
Vessel registration, charter parties, cargo claims, and classification, valuation and proceedings before the Dirección General de Aduanas.
Real estate
Title due diligence before the Jurisdicción Inmobiliaria, purchase and sale, tourism and real estate development, condominiums and mortgage secured financing.
Residency and citizenship
Residency by investment, family reunification and naturalization in the Dominican Republic under Law 285-04, and immigration counsel toward the United States.
Trusts and international structures
Trusts under Law 189-11, holding companies and cross border estate planning in full regulatory compliance.
U.S. corporations and LLCs
Formation of corporations and LLCs in all fifty states, Delaware included, with registered agent, tax identification, banking and annual compliance for Dominican entrepreneurs.
Criminal defense
Defense and private prosecution in white collar, fraud, money laundering and property crime matters, with particular attention to the foreign client.
Family law
Divorce, marital property regimes, adoption, successions and recognition of foreign family court judgments.
Service of process (alguacil)
Service of foreign complaints, summonses and judgments throughout the Dominican Republic, with returns and certified translations for the forum court.
Insurance and reinsurance
Insurers, reinsurers, brokers and managing general agencies operating or seeking to operate in the Dominican and Latin American market.
Banking and finance
Financial intermediaries, fiduciaries and investment funds subject to the Junta Monetaria and the Superintendencia del Mercado de Valores.
Tourism and hospitality
Hotel developers, operators and owners making use of Law 158-01 incentives and the CONFOTUR regime.
Construction and infrastructure
Contractors and sureties in public and private works: tenders under Law 340-06, contracts, performance bonds and claims.
Free trade zones
Establishment and operation of companies under Law 8-90, CNZFE permits and customs compliance.
Trade and logistics
Importers, exporters, shipping lines and freight forwarders across the customs and port chain.
Agribusiness
Agricultural producers and exporters, with first hand experience in Cibao coffee cultivation.
Energy
Generators and renewable project developers under Law 57-07 and concession processes.
Foreign law firms
Firms in the United States, Puerto Rico and Europe that need Dominican correspondent counsel for opinions, exequatur, investigations and service.
The partners of Villar, Sánchez and Poindexter
M. Yorleny Villar R.
Yorleny Villar leads the firm's Dominican practice from Santo Domingo. Her work spans civil and commercial litigation before the courts of the Republic, family law, real estate contracting, and residency and naturalization for foreign clients. She is the point of contact for local clients and for foreign firms that need a correspondent in the country.
- Focus
- Litigation, family law, real estate, residency and citizenship
- Languages
- Spanish, English
- Contact
- Yorleny@VSP.com.do · +1 (849) 570-2800
C. Constantin Poindexter Salcedo
Constantin Poindexter is an attorney and surety and reinsurance underwriter with more than thirty years of practice. He is chief executive of Janus Assurance Re, a reinsurer domiciled in the Dominican Republic, and founder of Surety One, Inc. His practice joins Dominican and United States law with underwriting technique, allowing him to advise insurers, sureties and companies from both sides of the table: licensing, reinsurance treaties, captives, judicial and performance bonds, and claims.
He is the author of The Contractor's Guide to Surety Bonds and publishes regularly on surety, reinsurance and fiduciary liability in English and Spanish.
- Focus
- Insurance, reinsurance and surety, captives, foreign investment, U.S. entities, arbitration
- Credentials
- MA, JD, CPCU, AFSB, ASLI, ARe, AINS, AIS, CPLP
- Languages
- Spanish, English
- Contact
- Constantin@VSP.com.do · +1 (849) 570-2800 · LinkedIn
Erika Sánchez
Erika Sánchez is a founding partner of Villar, Sánchez and Poindexter, and her name forms part of the firm's corporate name. She took part in building the firm's corporate and collections practice in Santo Domingo and in developing its institutional client base. Retired from active practice, she remains associated with the firm in an advisory capacity.
- Focus
- Corporate law, corporate collections
- Languages
- Spanish, English
Paralegals and management: Eddy Marcelino M. The firm also draws on affiliated professionals in economics, actuarial science and forensics, and on a corps of alguaciles throughout the national territory.
Matters that illustrate how we work
Formation and licensing of a reinsurer domiciled in the Dominican Republic
Corporate structure, minimum capital, filing before the Superintendencia de Seguros and ongoing compliance for a surety focused reinsurer that today writes business in the United States and Latin America.
Service of U.S. federal and state court complaints throughout the country
Assignments in all 31 provinces and the Distrito Nacional for foreign litigants, with alguacil returns and certified translations accepted by the forum court, and compliance supervision by a firm attorney.
Formation of LLCs and corporations for Dominican entrepreneurs in all fifty states
Choice of state and entity type, registered agent, tax identification, banking and annual compliance, including Delaware structures.
Judicial and performance bonds for contractors and litigants
Counsel on posting, court acceptance, collateral substitution and discharge of bonds in Dominican and U.S. proceedings, including claims against the surety.
Support for North American investors in real estate and tourism acquisitions
Title due diligence, structuring through Dominican companies, investment registration, CONFOTUR incentives and residency by investment for the principals.
Dominican law opinions and exequatur for U.S. and Puerto Rico firms
Legal opinions on capacity, security and enforceability of contracts, and recognition of foreign judgments and awards before Dominican courts.
Alguaciles in every province of the Dominican Republic
VSP's civil deputies serve legal process throughout the Dominican Republic on behalf of domestic and foreign litigants, with returns of service that satisfy the Dominican Code of Civil Procedure and the rules of the forum court. Every assignment is supervised by a firm attorney, so the file reaches the foreign court ready to be admitted.
- Service of complaints, summonses, subpoenas and judgments from the United States, Puerto Rico and Europe
- Alguacil returns and certified translations ready for the foreign court's file
- Advice on the proper channel: direct service, letters rogatory or the Hague Convention
- Skip tracing and investigation through Poindexter Global Intelligence
Five steps we handle from start to finish
- Structure
Choice of vehicle: S.R.L., S.A., branch of a foreign company or trust, with tax and liability analysis.
- Formation
Commercial registry, RNC tax number before the DGII and local bank accounts.
- Investment
Registration of the foreign investment with ProDominicana and access to sector incentives.
- Permits
Sector licenses, environmental permits, real estate titles and hiring under the Labor Code.
- People
Residency by investment for the principals and their families, through naturalization.
What we are asked most often
General guidance only. Every matter requires its own analysis.
Can a foreigner buy real estate in the Dominican Republic?
How is a U.S. court complaint served in the Dominican Republic?
Can a foreign insurer operate in the Dominican Republic?
Can a Dominican entrepreneur form an LLC in the United States?
How do I obtain residency in the Dominican Republic?
Can a foreign judgment be enforced in the Dominican Republic?
Guides for clients and foreign counsel
Legal guide to investing in the Dominican Republic
Corporate vehicles, investment registration, tax incentives, real estate, employment and residency, in one document for the first time investor.
Request the guideService of process in Puerto Rico: Emplazador.com
Our unit Diligencias Legales de Puerto Rico serves process under the Puerto Rico Rules of Civil Procedure and publishes two free treatises: Service of Process in Puerto Rico and El Emplazamiento en Puerto Rico.
Visit Emplazador.comGuide to service of process in the Dominican Republic
For U.S. and Puerto Rico attorneys: what to send, what return you will receive, timing, translations and how to prove service to your court.
Request the guideNeed to schedule a consultation with the VSP team?
Request a consultationThree offices, one team
Santo Domingo de Guzmán office
Centro de los Héroes · Apartado Postal 1072
Santo Domingo de Guzmán, D.N., 10101
+1 (849) 570-2800
United States office
5 W. Hargett Street, 4th Floor
Raleigh, NC 27601
+1 (919) 859-5294 · +1 (800) 373-2804
Puerto Rico office
404 Ave. de la Constitución, Suite 708
San Juan, PR 00901
+1 (787) 333-0222
Info@VSP.com.do · general inquiries
Alguacil@VSP.com.do · service of process