Author: Poblete Tamargo LLP

A Senate Committee has passed legislation aimed at boosting agricultural trade with Cuba. In an article published on July 27, the most recent efforts of Congress to normalize relations with Cuba are discussed.

Many lawmakers like Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) have sponsored legislation that would increase trade with Cuba, something that many on the hill feel would be beneficial for their home state businesses. Other representatives, including many from South Florida like Marco Rubio, are still working to thwart efforts to make business with Cuba possible.

Jason Poblete, former Congressional hill staffer and an international law and federal regulatory attorney at Poblete Tamargo LLP, spoke with McClatchy DC on the various measures being taken on both the Senate and House floors.

Though bills may make it through various committees, they will also have to make it through the House or Senate side with amendments intact in order for the legislation to be successful.

The McClatchy DC article is available here.

In a recent editorial titled “US-Cuba Thaw Could Bring Staples a Windfall,” Taryn Luna, author at the Boston Globe, talks with Mauricio Tamargo, certified claims attorney, as she discusses the changing hands of ownership over corporate claims to Cuban assets.

After acquiring Office Depot Inc., Staples Inc., will be in possession of a claim to the Cuban Electric Company, which had all assets seized by the Castro regime in 1960. There are more than 5,900 claims against the government of Cuba by American companies and individuals. The US Foreign Claims Settlement Commission (“FCSC”) orignally certified the claim for Cuban Electric to be worth approximately $267 million, which translates to a value of almost $8 billion today.

In her discussion of the Office Depot-Staples merger, Luna examines the issue of corporate claims to Cuban assets. Questions have risen as to whether Cuba has the financial means to pay the billions of dollars in claims to certified claim holders, if and when settlement is discussed.

A Creighton study from 2007 describes the alternative means of compensation to companies and individuals for losses attributed to assets seized by Castro. Suggested plans of compensation, for example, would be to give a company exclusive rights to selling their products in major Cuban cities.

Former FCSC chairman, and expert on claims settlement, Mauricio Tamargo disagrees with these proposed ideas. Tamargo explains that a complete change in political and economic policy would be required for US claims holders to safely and securely invest in companies without facing the risk of seizure.

To read the complete editorial in the Boston Globe go here.

(Washington, DC) On Monday, July 20, the Cuban embassy was reopened in Washington, DC, marking the renewal of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba.

As these two countries work to re-build relations, the compensation by Cuba for properties confiscated from American families and corporations will be an issue of discussion in the months ahead.

At the Cuba Embassy re-dedication this week, CNBC’s Michelle Caruso-Cabrera was joined by Jason Poblete, a sanctions specialist and claims attorney, as they discussed property claims. You can view the interview by following this link.

In an interview with Mercado De Dinero USA, Money Market USA speaks with Jason Poblete on the opening of embassies and other US-Cuba policy matters.

On the topic of property claims some sort of settlement must happen before the embargo can be lifted. International laws have successfully been used in Germany, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union where these governments owing money have been rewarded. As far as Cuba goes, expropriations and confiscations of property must be paid to the state and companies concerned, a process that will take place via the Department of Justice.

For the complete article (in spanish) go here.

The Center for Responsive Politics published a story on July 14, 2015, discussing the issue of property claims in the normalization of relations between the US and Cuba. Individual Americans are currently the leading force behind reaching a settlement as they make up the bulk of more than $7 billion in certified claims against the government of Cuba.

When property was seized after the 1959 Communist takeover of Cuba, American families and corporations comprised the largest number of foreign investors on the island. At the time, Americans that had property and assets seized by Cuba filed claims with the U.S. government. These claims have yet to be settled. Over the years, these claims have been passed down through families as the interest has accumulated.

Following the Obama administration’s announcement on re-establishing ties with Cuba, families holding certified claims have reached out to Poblete Tamargo as the issue of property claims has renewed popular interest. Restitution for property taken “was an issue nobody was paying attention to,” says Jason Poblete, an attorney with the firm. “The property issue should have been close to the front of the discussion, and it hasn’t been.”

Read the entire article here.