Supreme Court clears way for Exxon lawsuit against Cuban state companies over seized property
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that Exxon Mobil can pursue a lawsuit against Cuban state-owned companies over property confiscated after Fidel Castro’s communist government seized American-owned assets more than six decades ago.
In a 6-3 decision, the court held that the Helms-Burton Act allows U.S. nationals to sue Cuban government agencies and instrumentalities directly for trafficking in confiscated property, rejecting arguments that those entities remain shielded by foreign sovereign immunity.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, writing for the majority, said Congress intended the Helms-Burton Act to provide a meaningful remedy for victims of property confiscations carried out by the Cuban government following the revolution.
“It would make little sense for Congress to construct an elaborate statute authorizing suits against the Cuban government agencies and instrumentalities if, because of the FSIA, almost no suits could ever get through the courthouse door,” Kavanaugh wrote.
The dispute centers on whether plaintiffs suing under the Helms-Burton Act must also satisfy exceptions contained in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, which generally protects foreign governments and their entities from lawsuits in U.S. courts.
The court concluded that the Helms-Burton Act itself removed sovereign immunity protections for Cuban agencies and instrumentalities that traffic in confiscated property, allowing such lawsuits to proceed without clearing additional hurdles under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.
“The Helms-Burton Act authorizes private suits against Cuban agencies and instrumentalities,” Kavanaugh wrote.
According to the opinion, Fidel Castro’s government confiscated Exxon’s refinery, terminals, packaging plants and more than 100 service stations after taking power in Cuba. The court said CUPET and CIMEX have operated and profited from those assets since the nationalization.
The U.S. Foreign Claims Settlement Commission certified Exxon’s confiscated property claim at more than $70 million in 1969. The court said the claim now exceeds $1 billion because of accrued interest and statutory damages.
The lawsuit stems from the Helms-Burton Act, a 1996 law that allows U.S. nationals to sue over property confiscated by the Cuban government. Presidents from both parties suspended the provision until 2019, when the first Trump administration allowed such lawsuits to proceed.
Justice Elena Kagan dissented, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson, arguing Congress never explicitly removed sovereign immunity protections for Cuban government entities.
The ruling follows another Supreme Court decision last month allowing lawsuits against cruise lines over their use of confiscated property in Havana and could affect thousands of other certified claims tied to property seized after the Cuban Revolution.