International Experience

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The 21^st century global marketplace requires exacting multilingual and multicultural legal knowledge to do international business successfully, cost effectively, and efficiently. Likewise, an international commercial arena fraught with complex cross-border disputes calls for particular agility and experience in worldwide courts and arbitral tribunals.

Diaz Reus transactional and litigation attorneys, solicitors, and consultants have repeatedly demonstrated unparalleled legal skill in numerous complicated, high-stakes and precedent-setting matters in various global industries and venues. In the process they’ve created an international legal powerhouse that stands as an important resource for our corporate, public and private clients.

Representative Matters

Below are overviews of the two most-recent landmark Diaz Reus cases, and of current Diaz Reus litigation.

Canon Latin America, Inc. v. Lantech. Diaz Reus attorneys obtained an anti-suit injunction for their client Canon Latin America, Inc., prohibiting a Costa Rican distributor from prosecuting a $6 million+ claim against Canon for allegedly violating Costa Rica’s Representatives of Foreign Companies Act. That decision is now final and the distributor is permanently barred from pursuing its lawsuit in Costa Rica in violation of the forum selection clause. The ruling is on appeal and thus poised to be binding precedent in the Eleventh Federal Circuit and of major U.S. legal significance as it relates to foreign anti-suit injunctions. Click here to read the ruling. Click here to read media coverage.

Guevara v. Republic of Peru. Comparing Peruvian President Fujimori’s spymaster and confidant Vladimiro Montesinos to “Rasputin, Darth Vader, Torquemada and Cardinal Richelieu”, the Federal Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit overturned the dismissal of Diaz Reus' lawsuit against the Republic of Peru, flatly rejecting Peru’s defense under the Foreign Sovereign Immunity Act (FSIA). Diaz Reus' client Jose Guevara sued the Republic of Peru for failing to pay a $5 million reward owed him for information he provided law enforcement authorities that led to the capture and arrest of the international fugitive Montesinos. The court concluded that the offer of an award was a “commercial exception” to the FSIA because the Republic of Peru was acting no differently than a private citizen and thus was not protected by immunity offered to foreign sovereigns under the FSIA. This is a pivotal case in today’s post-9/11 environment, where rewards and bounties are routinely offered by governments for the capture of international fugitives and terrorists, such as Osama Bin Laden. To read the court decision, click here. To read media coverage click here.

CURRENT LITIGATION

Diaz Reus’ significant current international litigation matters include:

Honduran government co-op arbitration/U.S. Petroleum Company: Representing Central America cooperative in international arbitration action against U.S. petroleum company for breaching government transportation contract.
Spain/Florida $60 million Rubens painting recovery: Representing a U.S. family attempting to recover a painting by renowned 17^th century Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens, allegedly valued at over $60 million, wrongfully converted by consignors and art appraisers hired to appraise it, and now located somewhere in Spain.
South-American/Florida $200 million divorce: Prosecuting a $200 million divorce case involving the freezing of assets, tracing funds off-shore and piercing off-shore trusts throughout the Caribbean, Europe and U.S.
Guatemalan/Dubai airplane purchase: Arbitrating a commercial dispute regarding the purchase-and-sale contract transferring various airplanes from Central American to South American airlines—planes ultimately sold to a third-party airline in Dubai.
Chinese/U.S. collection: Representing a Chinese manufacturer of construction materials in a Florida collection action.
Guatemala/Florida fraud suit: Representing a prominent Guatemalan businessman and one of his companies in a breach-of-contract and fraud lawsuit initiated by a Florida-based medical-supplies distributor.
New York obstruction of justice: Representing a high-profile New York financier and his representatives in a Florida Federal grand jury investigation for the destruction of evidence and obstruction of justice allegations.
U.S. Peruvian Government investigation: Representing U.S. multinational corporation victimized by fraudulent acts during government bid process in Peru.
Louisiana Bank OFAC/Middle Eastern terrorist money-laundering: Representing a Louisiana bank in a grand jury investigation of possible terrorist-financing and money-laundering charges against account holders of Middle Eastern descent who have been placed on OFAC’s no-fly list.
South-American/U.S.A. $300 million probate proceedings: Representing multiple heirs in a South American businessman’s estate in both primary and ancillary high net-worth probate proceedings in South America and the United States.
Venezuela/Kansas Money-laundering/aircraft purchase dispute: Representing a Florida company and aircraft purchaser against the Kansas-based manufacturer and the secured lender, for failing to remit net surplus proceeds after the aircraft had been improperly repossessed and sold—because it was allegedly purchased with tainted money from South American Ponzi scheme.
Argentina/Bermuda/BVI Ponzi-scheme accusations: Representing a South American businessman accused of running a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme through the sale of currency futures.
Dubai entertainment contract/singer: Representing singer and songwriter in contractual dispute with agent in Dubai-based arbitration.
Peruvian/Chicago telecom trade dispute: Representing a Peruvian telecom distributor against a Fortune 500 Chicago-based telecom supplier for the theft of trade secrets and commercial interference with distributor’s business operations.
Chicago Ex-wife accused in $13 million embezzlement: Representing the former wife of a Chicago bank employee who embezzled $13 million, in a lawsuit alleging she knew of and participated in her husband’s fraud.
Venezuela banking aid: Representing a Venezuelan government banking entity against a prominent South American family in connection with a multimillion-dollar loan guarantee.
Venezuelan government bond prosecution: Spearheading the investigation and civil prosecution of major U.S. bank for the verification, deposit and unauthorized withdrawal of Venezuelan government bonds.
Japan/Costa Rica/ Venezuela/ U.S. intellectual-property dispute: Investigating and prosecuting intellectual property rights and trademark violations in Costa Rica and Venezuela on behalf of a U.S. subsidiary of Japan-based manufacturer of high-end office equipment.
Venezuela/U.S.A. appeal: Representing a Venezuelan governmental financial institution in appeal challenging the trial court’s refusal to allow an additional time extension to serve the complaint and serve process on defendants in an outstanding government loan-collection action.
Colombian Euros seizures: Representing various Colombian casas de cambio/money transmitters whose funds have been frozen in the United States based on allegations of money laundering.
British Virgin Islands Trust dispute: Representing BVI Board of Directors majority against minority directors’ unauthorized and intransigent acts.
Ecuador human rights: Representing representative of U.S. corporation victimized by local police and judiciary for abuse of process.
Finnish/Chinese Telecommunications: Representing Finnish telecommunications company’s purchase of equipment from Chinese manufacturer for distribution in Latin America – contract and negotiations.
Guatemalan/Swiss commercial bribery and RICO investigation: Representing Guatemalan commercial industry leader victimized by Swiss-based international conglomerate’s kickback scheme to bribe Guatemalan employees in purchase orders.
Honduran Government entity arbitration: Representing government entity in contractual dispute and right to arbitrate case in proper forum.
North Carolina based U.S. national chain commercial dispute: Representing national retail chain against orchestrated nation and statewide attack by competing supermarket chain on restraint of trade and commercial lease dispute.
Guatemalan intellectual property theft: Representing victim of theft and conversion of intellectual-technology-based property rights by Florida-based corporation.