CaribPR Wire

WASHINGTON, Jan. 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ – Groom Law Group, Chartered, a Washington, D.C.-based law firm that focuses exclusively on employee benefits law, announced today that Juan Luis Alonso – a widely respected attorney with broad-based expertise in Puerto Rico employee benefits matters, has joined the Firm.

Before joining Groom Law Group, Alonso spent over a decade at McConnell Valdes LLC in Puerto Rico, most recently serving as Chair of the Employee Benefits team.  He has an extensive background in the design and qualification of Puerto Rico and U.S. qualified and non-qualified retirement plans, ERISA litigation support, and Puerto Rico, U.S. tax code and ERISA compliance, including fiduciary issues.  Alonso, who is also a CPA, worked for a Big 4 accounting firm for three years as a tax consultant before joining McConnell Valdes.

“Adding Juan Luis to our Plan Design and Taxation Group fits the firm’s strategic expansion plans – consistent with our goal to provide clients with ‘one-stop benefit services’ from a single location in the nation’s capital,” explains the Firm’s managing partner, John McGuiness.

McGuiness notes that many of the firm’s Fortune 500 clients maintain pension and savings plans for their Puerto Rico workers, and many other firm clients invest the funds of Puerto Rico plans.  Groom has advised clients on plan qualification, distribution taxation, and ERISA issues on Puerto Rico plan matters for many years.  Most recently, Groom has spearheaded efforts to persuade IRS and Treasury policymakers to provide relief for Puerto Rico plans to invest alongside their U.S. counterparts.  Alonso’s expertise will greatly enhance Groom’s ability to meet client needs in this important area.

Extensive 2011 changes in the Puerto Rico tax code have further harmonized the plan qualification rules in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.  McGuiness adds, “Juan Luis’ knowledge of Puerto Rico law – and of Hacienda’s policies and procedures – will complement and add substantial value to Groom’s practice in this area, benefitting firm clients.”  Alonso will continue to be actively involved with Puerto Rico legislative and regulatory officials when working from the firm’s D.C. office.

Groom’s Plan Design and Taxation Group has a national reputation for its expertise in the design and operation of all forms of employee benefit programs.  The firm provides services to Fortune 500 companies, trade associations, government entities, tax-exempt organizations, churches, and financial institutions – working with them to create and maintain a wide variety of employee benefit programs that adhere to the highest regulatory standards.

About Groom Law Group

Groom Law Group, Chartered (www.groom.com) is the premier employee benefits law firm in the United States with 55 attorneys dedicated to this dynamic and complex area of law. Groom provides clients with cost-effective, creative, and practical solutions to sophisticated benefits and tax law challenges.