BIOGRAPHY:

Eric Hager is a partner in the Firm’s Quito, Ecuador office. His practice includes transnational litigation, appeals, commercial fraud & forensic recovery, securities & financial regulatory litigation, consumer finance litigation, general civil litigation, appeals, land use litigation, securities & financial regulatory litigation and trust litigation.

Mr. Hager’s experience in complex litigation is varied. He has played key roles in diverse matters in a number of state and federal courts throughout the country and has managed multinational teams on difficult e-discovery and other discovery projects. Mr. Hager has also led or participated in appeals in multiple state and federal courts. He has worked closely with experts on foreign law from Ecuador, Colombia and Peru. Mr. Hager has drafted successful requests for discovery in relation to foreign legal proceedings under 28 U.S.C. § 1782, which is a statute allowing litigants to obtain discovery related to foreign legal proceedings using the assistance of U.S. courts. In addition, he provides the firm’s Latin American clients with assistance in cross-border litigation and transactions.

Mr. Hager has experience briefing a wide range of complicated legal issues. Representative issues include choice of law, including between foreign and U.S. law; international comity, forum non conveniens, and other defenses common to transnational litigation; statutory construction of state, federal, and foreign statutes; removal from federal court and remand to state court; the intersection of state property law and federal tax law; standing and capacity to sue; issue and claim preclusion; tolling of the statute of limitations and other timeliness issues; and procedural issues associated with a variety of pre-trial motions, including motions to dismiss, motions for summary judgment, discovery motions, and motions in limine.

Prior to focusing on commercial litigation and appeals, Mr. Hager spent over six years primarily representing the firm’s clients seeking to hold multinational corporations accountable for human rights abuses. In that role, he took and defended depositions abroad and in the U.S., obtained a reversal on a key issue from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, briefed numerous other appeals, argued pre-trial motions before state and federal courts, and led discovery-related and other field work in remote regions of Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

Before joining the Firm in 2009, he practiced as a commercial litigator, primarily working on consumer financial services matters in the Washington, D.C. office of a large national firm.

Mr. Hager is fluent in Spanish, resides in Quito, Ecuador, and has traveled extensively throughout the South American Andean region on business.

Awards/Recognitions

• Columbia University School of Law, Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar
• Columbia University Journal of Environmental Law, Articles Editor
• Fulbright Scholar, Canada-U.S. Fulbright Program, September 2002 to May 2003

BIOGRAPHY:

Patrick O’Neill is an Associate Attorney in the firm’s Ecuador office. He assists the firm’s U.S.-based litigation practice, and his own practice areas include securities litigation, class action litigation, general commercial litigation and appellate practice.

Mr. O’Neill has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in various venues throughout the United States. In particular, he has helped dozens of defrauded investors recover their losses through FINRA arbitrations, brought class actions against major financial firms in state and federal courts, and represented companies of all sizes – from small businesses to multinational corporations – in all manners of litigation. His engaging personality and common-sense approach to problem solving allow him to achieve quick and favorable results for his clients.

Prior to joining Conrad & Scherer, Mr. O’Neill worked for a mid-sized law firm in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where his practice focused in plaintiff-side securities fraud cases.

BIOGRAPHY:

David Garcés is an Ecuadorian attorney in the firm’s Quito office. He focuses his practice on advising U.S. and Latin American clients on international negotiations, mergers & acquisitions, cross-border litigation, family law matters and real estate transactions. He has experience in corporate law, transactions, mergers & acquisitions, real estate, e-commerce, family law, probate and international law. Mr. Garcés regularly advises Ecuadorian and international clients on Ecuadorian and international family law, probate and real estate issues. In addition, he serves as an expert on Ecuadorian law, providing declarations used in federal court litigation.