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ABOUT DIAZ REUS ATTORNEYS PRACTICE AREAS INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE BLOGS |
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February 2012
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DIAZ REUS PARTNER, ISRAEL REYES, REPRESENTS LANDMARK HOTEL OWNER IN SUIT AGAINST GERMAN BANK
Hit by high levels of insolvency and with losses of more than 2 billion euros by 2005, WestLB began to take calculated, fraudulent steps to artificially book liquidity and delay its demise. “We are seeking justice for our client which lost money, income and reputation because of the bank’s alleged deceptive and illegal actions,” said attorney Israel Reyes, a partner at Miami-based Diaz Reus & Targ, LLP, who represents Casa Casuarina LLC with co-counsel Adam Steinberg, a Fort Lauderdale attorney. Eligio Cedeño v. Castillo | DIAZ REUS PARTNERS SUCCESSFUL IN RICO CASE DISMISSALBy: Gary Davidson, Miami Office; Michael Diaz, Jr., Miami Office; Carlos Gonzalez, Miami OfficeDiaz Reus & Targ partner, Carlos F. Gonzalez, who heads up the firm’s appellate practice, successfully presented oral argument for the defense to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in December, in a case filed by plaintiff Eligio Cedeño, a Venezuelan banker who is now in exile in Miami. Cedeño’s complaint alleged a conspiracy between several high-ranking Venezuelan government officials and businessmen who used a combination of official pressure and threats to extort the plaintiff’s interest in two Venezuelan banks. However, the Plaintiffs never even got to first base with their case—either before the District Court or the Court of Appeals. This case had enormous importance because it was one of the first to address the possible extension to RICO of very recent U.S. Supreme Court precedent admonishing the lower courts about extending the reach of U.S. laws extraterritorially in the absence of a clear mandate from Congress to do so. BAD DIM SUM: LOWERED RISK APPETITE HAMPERING YUAN'S RISEBy: Xingjian Zhao, Miami Office
COMPLYING WITH BRAZIL'S CONSUMER PROTECTION CODEBy: Jeffrey Brown, Miami OfficeIn Brazil, foreign suppliers can enjoy great returns on their investments, but to the caveat is for them to have a clear understanding of the key business and legal issues in the context of doing business in Brazil and, most importantly laws protecting consumers in Brazil. If you are a supplier supplying goods in Brazil, you need to be specifically aware of the following provisions under the Brazilian Consumer Protection Code (CPC): (1) product liability, (2) advertising, and (3) contract provisions and rights. INDIA, MEXICO CONTINUE TO STRENGTHEN TRADE AND INVESTMENT TIESBy: Sumeet Chugani, Miami Office; Ricardo Ortiz Gil Lamadrid, Mexico City Office
THE NAFTA OF THE PACIFICBy: Adriana Clamens, Miami OfficeOn November 12, 2011, leaders of the nine Trans-Pacific Partnership countries – Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Peru, Chile and the United States – announced that they have reached initial consensus on drafting an ambitious, 21st-century Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement that will enhance trade and investment among the TPP partner countries. The TPP Agreement will tackle new cross-cutting issues not included in previous trade agreements, such as making the regulatory systems of TPP countries more mutually compatible so companies can operate more seamlessly in TPP markets, create more jobs, and become more active participants in international commerce. AN IMPROVED NAFTA? INVESTOR-STATE ARBITRATION PROVISIONS UNDER THE COLOMBIA-US FREE TRADE AGREEMENTBy: Marcela Blanco, Bogota, D.C. Office
LEGAL COUNSEL FOR VENEZUELA'S BANCO LATINO EARNS DIAZ REUS PARTNERS "MOST EFFECTIVE LAWYERS" SELECTION FOR INTERNATIONAL LAWDiaz Reus & Targ, LLP partners Michael Diaz, Jr., Gary E. Davidson and Carlos F. Gonzalez were recently recognized by South Florida, Daily Business Review as the 2011 "Most Effective Lawyers" in the international law category for their successful efforts as legal counsel for Venezuela’s Banco Latino, which sued Milagros Cisneros Fajardo, a wealthy Venezuelan whose mining company defaulted on a $9.25 million loan. Diaz, the firm’s managing partner, and Davidson tried the case before a jury, while Gonzalez argued critical motions to preserve the record for appeal. Diaz Reus was previously a finalist in the international law category for its lawsuit against the Republic of Peru. |
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In a case with international financial implications,
Casa Casuarina LLC, owner of a landmark Miami Beach resort property once owned by designer Gianni Versace and
known as the Versace mansion, is
suing its mortgage holder German bank WestLB on multiple counts of
alleged fraud. 
Nicknamed “Dim Sum” bonds after Hong Kong’s favorite dining pastime, these securities were until recently considered the hottest financial innovation in Asia. The fast-growing market in “Dim Sum” bonds had been an enticing choice for foreign investors. This is primarily because the bonds are bought and sold in Chinese yuan, a currency which had appeared to be a one-way appreciation bet against the U.S. dollar. However recently, China's cooling domestic housing market, slowing economic growth, reduced inflation, and a stronger dollar overseas have put collective pressure on cautious policymakers to slow – and at times reverse – the yuan’s appreciation against the dollar. This slowdown in the yuan’s rise is a foreboding development for dim sum bond investors, who have banked their investments on the currency’s uninterrupted surge.
India and Mexico have a long history of friendship, as well as a growing volume of bilateral trade. Antipodes as they are on the globe, they share striking commonalities – not only of geography, climate and culture, but also of the mindsets and values of their peoples. Furthermore both countries are large emerging economies, with thriving domestic markets, and both share a strong commitment to democracy. As a matter of fact, Mexico was the first Latin American country to recognize India after her independence, and both established diplomatic relations in as early as 1950.
More than 17 years have passed since the NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement) was implemented. Along with the passing of this multifaceted accord came mixed feelings on the agreement’s repercussions, and whether it will actually benefit any of its signatories. Seventeen years later, those mixed feelings remain, and debates continue to rage as to whether the NAFTA had brought about any of the positive changes that its drafters had envisioned. Amidst these uncertainties came the implementation of the recently approved the Colombia-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (“CFTA”). The CFTA’s definition of what constitutes an “investment” is more sophisticated than its counterpart provision under the NAFTA. Although the CFTA introduces a flexible concept of an “investor” as compared to that of the NAFTA, however, the CFTA does not totally preclude the possibility of litigation on this front. 