Alejandro Cruz is a Partner in the firm’s Litigation department.  Mr. Cruz represents clients in complex commercial litigation, as well as in arbitrations, mediations, and investigations.  His practice includes representing law firms and lawyers accused of legal malpractice, companies accused of antitrust violations, and financial institutions in a broad range of litigation, as well as disputes involving transactions and ownership of fine art.  Mr. Cruz also defends clients in government investigations by federal and state agencies, as well as representing boards of directors and board committees of public companies in investigations and shareholder disputes.  In addition, as a member of the firm’s Privacy and Data Security group, Mr. Cruz advises clients on a wide array of cybersecurity and privacy issues, including incident response, ransomware, regulatory compliance, and risk mitigation.  In 2020, the New York Law Journal named Mr. Cruz a “Rising Star,” a designation recognizing “the region’s most promising lawyers ages 40 and under.”  In 2024, Benchmark Litigation recognized Mr. Cruz as a “Future Star” for New York in Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC’s Guide.

Mr. Cruz also maintains an active pro bono practice, including federal civil rights litigation involving the First, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments, the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, as well as defending eviction proceedings and other housing disputes.  In 2016, Mr. Cruz received the Brooklyn Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project’s Champion of Justice Award for his commitment to pro bono service.  Mr. Cruz is a member of the board of directors of Legal Services of the Hudson Valley, a nonprofit legal services organization that provides support, advocacy, and high quality civil legal representation to poor and low-income families and individuals in New York state.  He also sits on the board of directors of White Plains Hospital and the Hudson River School of Music, as well as the board of advisors for the Dartmouth College Center for Social Impact.

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Cruz served as a law clerk to the Honorable Eric N. Vitaliano of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York from 2011 to 2012, and prior to that practiced at a New York law firm.

Bar Admissions

• U.S. District Court, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York
• New York

Education

• University of Virginia School of Law (J.D., 2009)
  • Editorial Board, Virginia Law Review
  • Order of the Coif
• Dartmouth College (A.B., cum laude, 2004)

HONORS: Listed as a “Future Star” for New York in Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC’s Benchmark Litigation’s 2023 Guide; Named as a “Rising Star” by the New York Law Journal (2020)

MEMBERSHIPS: Board of Directors, Legal Services of the Hudson Valley; Board of Directors, White Plains Hospital; Board of Advisors, Dartmouth College Center for Social Impact.

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS: "Anatomy of a Law Firm Ransomware Attack: An Interactive Simulation," ABA's Fall 2024 National Legal Malpractice Conference; "A Firm's Feedback Culture: How to Use Feedback to Implement Change," WSG Annual Meeting (September 10, 2024); Panelist, "AI and the Workplace: What You Need to Know Now," CLE (May 9, 2024); Presenter, "When Crisis Hits: A Step-by-Step Response to Data Privacy Breaches for Nonprofits," NYC Bar Hot Topics in Not-for-Profit Law (November 6, 2023); Panelist, "RLUIPA: Protecting Religious Land Use For Over 20 Years," DOJ Civil Rights Division Outreach Panel (October 30, 2023)

• Co-author, “New York’s Cybersecurity Regulation for Financial Institutions, A New Age of Cybersecurity Regulation: Raising the Bar and Demanding Leadership Accountability,” Bloomberg Law (April 17, 2017)