The Miami-based law firm, Harper Meyer Perez Hagen Albert Dribin & DeLuca LLP, which has been frequently recognized for its experience in US-Cuba legal issues, has expressed it’s elation and deep satisfaction over the release of Alan Gross from prison in Cuba, after having served five years on charges of engaging in activities aimed at destabilizing the Cuban government. George Harper commented, “Mr. Gross is now back with his family, where he belongs. His release ushers in a new era in U.S.-Cuba commercial relations, resulting ultimately in the restoration of diplomatic ties and the relaxation of restrictions against business travel and other such economic sanctions.”
James Meyer added, “In our nearly 45 years of advising US and multi-national clients who are contemplating or pursuing business prospects in Cuba, we have never seen the window of opportunity open as wide as it has been opened by the release of Mr. Gross.” George Harper cautioned, however, that potential investors be mindful not to violate those US laws and regulations which remain firmly in place despite the warming relationship between the two countries. “We do expect that the Cuban Assets Control Regulations will be relaxed to an as yet unknown degree; nevertheless the Cuban embargo, and the economic restrictions embodied in the Cuban Democracy Act and the Helms-Burton Act, are still very much alive, and no one contemplating doing business in Cuba should do so without proper legal advice as to permissible activities there,” warned Harper.
For more information, please contact Steven Hagen, Managing Partner of Harper Meyer Perez Hagen Albert Dribin & DeLuca LLP at 305-577-3443 or Shagen@HarperMeyer.com.
To read the official White House press release on President Obama’s Cuba directive, please visit https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/12/17/fact-sheet-charting-new-course-cuba