Javier Collazo-Correa

Of Counsel

Contact

Locations

Hartford

Javier A. Collazo-Correa is an accomplished attorney with more than two decades of experience in commercial compliance, employment matters, litigation, and regulatory affairs. He has extensive experience drafting privacy policies, user terms, and customer contracts for online platforms, ensuring compliance with state and federal regulations. His background also includes litigating complex cases involving motor vehicle defects, warranty claims, and labor law.

Previously, Javier held leadership roles at the Agency for the Defense of Persons with Disabilities, where he served as Legal Director and Counsel to the Directors Council. In these capacities, he helped establish the agency’s legal framework, negotiated with federal authorities on grant compliance, and drafted regulations and legislation to safeguard disability rights.

Earlier in his career, Javier focused on labor and employment law, drafting employee handbooks and employment contracts, and advising on compliance with the Affordable Care Act. He represented clients in union certification elections, sexual harassment claims, and wage disputes, and worked extensively with the automotive industry on warranty compliance and product liability litigation.

Successfully negotiated the dismissal of adjudicative proceedings related to disability advocacy funds with Health and Human Services Secretary Silvia Mathews Burwell, after drafting agency regulations to ensure compliance with federal requirements.
Demonstrated that the Department of Consumer Affairs lacked jurisdiction to reopen a closed case and failed to comply with mandatory notification requirements; the Court agreed, ruling the agency’s actions void due to loss of jurisdiction and procedural defects. The appellate decision reinstated the original summary resolution, effectively dismissing the consumer complaint.
Challenged a dismissal under Puerto Rico’s Fiscal Emergency Law (Law 7), which authorized involuntary public-sector layoffs, by demonstrating that the plaintiff’s Program Coordinator position at the Office of the Procurador de Personas con Impedimentos was federally funded and essential to maintaining compliance with federal mandates, including the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act and election-accessibility programs (PAIR and HAVA/PA). The Court agreed, finding substantial evidence that the role was critical for securing and managing federal funds and ensuring continuity of services for individuals with disabilities. The appellate court reversed the prior administrative decision, reinforcing protections for federally funded positions and due process rights under both local and federal law.

Admissions

Puerto Rico
U.S. District Court, District Court of Puerto Rico

Education

J.D., Interamerican University School of Law, 2003
B.A., Universidad de Puerto Rico, 1999

Languages

Spanish