Last month, New York Law School (NYLS) alumni Jose Almanzar ’11 and Pablo Segarra ’17 participated in “Dominicana Week,” a Dominican Bar Association (DBA) event designed to inspire collaboration and foster meaningful dialogue within the DBA community.
The weeklong event in Santo Domingo included visits to the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Industry and Trade, National Congress, and Supreme Court. DBA members also met with prominent leaders in the Dominican government—including Minister of the Presidency Hon. José Ignacio Paliza and Chief Supreme Court Justice Hon. Luis Henry Molina Peña—to discuss professional development opportunities abroad and collective efforts to increase civic engagement globally.
“Our recent trip to the Dominican Republic was enriching,” Almanzar wrote in an email. “It provided me, Pablo, and other DBA delegation members with the opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions with Dominican government officials, business leaders, and practicing attorneys. It also provided Pablo and I an opportunity to spend a few days catching up, reminiscing, and sharing stories about practicing law in this age.”
Almanzar and Segarra share a unique connection, having become friends while attending Manhattan’s High School for Environmental Studies. Their paths intersected once again when they both chose to attend NYLS, albeit a few years apart. Despite pursuing different career paths, their shared roots have fostered a lasting friendship. Almanzar is currently Senior Counsel at Holland & Knight LLP, where he represents clients on a range of environmental legal and policy matters across industries. Segarra is a sought-after IP/tech attorney at Trademarkia, where he specializes in emerging technologies such as AI, blockchain, and Web3.
In a LinkedIn post about the event, Segarra wrote, “Reuniting with Jose was more than a nostalgic encounter; it was a celebration of resilience, shared history, and the enduring bonds forged through shared experiences. We’ve both faced challenges and accumulated our share of scars and war stories, but standing together now, we are filled with gratitude for the journeys that have shaped us.”