Nearly a quarter century after its passage, the Cuban Liberty
and Democratic Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1996 – commonly
known as Helms-Burton, after its sponsors – was expected to
revive a significant number of old disputes and unleash a flood of
fresh litigation against corporate giants around the world, after
the Trump Administration refused to continue to waive a
controversial provision of the law this spring. It’s been
nearly four months since the provision took effect, however, and
the expected wave of new lawsuits has been little more than a
trickle, with less than a dozen lawsuits filed (five of them
involving the same defendants) rehashing asset confiscation claims
that stretch back more than half a century, although a number of
other lawsuits have been threatened. In a new twist, these fresh
cases may breathe new life into various anti-U.S. sanctions
“blocking statutes” enacted (and largely shelved)
decades ago.
