Cuban lawyers host international congress in Havana

By Daily Pérez Guillén

The most important meeting of the Cuban legal profession began on March 5 at the Havana International Conference Center.

With the purpose of “giving voice to the defense of rights,” according to the slogan of the 10th International Law Congress, more than 650 legal professionals from all over the country and 10 representatives from other latitudes are discussing current ethical and professional trends in this field.

In her opening remarks, Lilia María Hernández Doejó, president of the Board of Directors of the National Organization of Collective Law Firms, emphasized that the delegates gathered here are debating “studies presided by the virtue of intelligence and ethics, concepts and trends on the observance of the right of access to justice, to a broad defense and respect for the rights of citizens, the fulfillment of the responsibilities of legal persons and the publicity and security of their acts.”

Conceived as an open space with work sessions and commissions that will address different topics, Hernández Doejó emphasized that this event “demonstrates the organization of information and communication technologies, created to carry out the function of administrative and jurisdictional processes, and to help to do things in a proper way, to make decisions to reach solutions also in line with the needs of our clients.”

Lilia María Hernández Doejó, president of the Board of Directors of the National Organization of Collective Law Firms. Photo: YCH.

In the technical session of the first day, four essential issues for the Cuban legal, economic and social scenario were addressed through lectures given by international experts in each of the topics. Dr. Juan Mendoza Díaz, professor of Procedural Law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Havana, president of the Cuban Society of Procedural Law of the National Union of Jurists of Cuba and with vast experience in international arbitration courts, referred to the need for periodic review and evaluation of the Criminal Procedure Law, a regulation that shows the empowerment of the Cuban legal profession.

The president of the Official Association of Administrative Agents of Madrid, Fernando de Jesús Santiago Ollero, focused his presentation on the need for legal operators to play a leading role in the country’s economic scenario, in alliance with the new economic actors of the private sector. Based on the experience of Spain over the last 70 years as regards MSMEs, he drew attention to the need for comprehensive legal support for entrepreneurs.

Based on the analysis of data provided by Cuban institutions, he stressed that about 85% of the country’s MSMEs are today outside the control of the legal profession. “It is about taking the initiative, responding to change and being protagonists,” he stressed.

Aida Kemelmajer, lawyer and Doctor of Law of the University of Mendoza, also took part in the conference to present the topic “Effective judicial protection in family proceedings.” Also participating was Dr. Rodolfo Dávalos, professor of International Private Law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Havana and president of the Cuban Society of Commercial Law and the Cuban Court of International Commercial Arbitration, who stressed the need to study commercial law and private international law in depth in order to successfully resolve the problems that arise in international litigation.

The program of the event included working commissions related to constitutional, civil, criminal and criminological, labor and agrarian law conflicts in the afternoon.

Until Friday, March 7, the Cuban lawyers’ guild will continue discussing essential topics for the Cuban reality, among which artificial intelligence stands out.