Document Type : Article
Authors
1 Ph.D. Student in International Law, Islamic Azad Universirt, Qom Branch, Qom, Iran.
2 Associate Prof., Qom University, Qom , Iran
Abstract
On 10 March 2020, the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal rendered its partial award in Case No. A15 (II:A). The case was brought before the Court by Iran, citing a breach of the United States' obligations under principle A and paragraph 9 of the Algeria General Declration to arrange for transfer to Iran of all “Iranian properties”. The court had to first establish Iran's title to the properties at issu in this case. To that end, relying on the conflict of law reuls of private international law the Court chose the law of the United States as lex rei sitae. Accordingly, Iran’s titele to the properties became subject to their delivary to Iran and accordciglly subject of the United State obligation to arrange for their transfer. As a result, the vast majority of Iran's claims have been dismissed. Now, given the nature of the Court as an international tribunal and the basis of litigation in an international treaty, the question is whether the Court has taken a proper approach to this issue. This article seeks to answer this question by relying on the descriptive-analytical method of research and using relevant library resources and jurisprudence and the dissenting opinion of the judges of the Court. It seems that a unified approach has not been adopted in this regard, but the characteristics of this court and the founding document of the court have prevented the court from adopting this approach.
Keywords
- Property
- property law
- Public international law
- Private international law
- Governing law
- The Iran-United States Claims Tribunal
Main Subjects
English
- A) Books
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- C) Arbitral Awards and separate opinions
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- ICJ, 1978, Aegean Sea Continental Shelf case), Judgment, ICJ Reports 1978.
- ICJ, 2001, LaGrand (Germany v. United States of America), Judgment of 27 June 2001.
- ICJ, 2010, Ahmadou Sadio Diallo (Republic of Guinea v. Democratic Republic of the Congo), Judgment of 30 November 2010.
- ICSID, 2016, Pac Rim Cayman LLC v. Republic of El Salvador, Case No. ARB/09/12, Award, 14 Oct. 2016.
- ICSID, 2017, Koch Minerals SARL & Koch Nitrogen Int’l SARL v. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Case No. ARB/11/19, Award, 30 Oct. 2017.
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- IUSCT, 1985, Housing and Urban Services International, Inc., v. Iran, Final Award No 201 (22 November 1985).
- IUSCT, 1992, Partial Award, Award No. 529-A15 (II:A and II:B)-FT.
- IUSCT, 1993, Birnbaum v. Iran, Award, Award No. 549-967-2 (6 July 1993).
- IUSCT, 1995, Ghaffari v. Iran, Award, Award No. 565-968-2 (6 July 1995).
- IUSCT, 2009, Partial Award, Award No. 60l-A3/ A8/ A9/ A 14/861-FT.
- IUSCT, 2020, Partial Award, Award No. 604-A15 (II:A)/A26 (IV)/B43-FT.
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- Seifi, S. J., 2020, IUSCT, Award No. 604-A15 (II:A)/A26 (IV)/B43-FT, Separate Opinion of Judge Seyed Jamal Seifi Concurring in Part, Dissenting in Part.
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- D) The US Executive Orders
- Executive Order 12170--Blocking Iranian Government property.
- Executive Order 12279--Direction to transfer Iranian Government assets held by domestic banks.
- Executive Order 12280--Direction to transfer Iranian Government financial assets held by non-banking institutions.
- Executive Order 12281--Direction to transfer certain Iranian Government assets.
- E) Doucuments
- Claims Settlement Declaration.
- Declaration of the Government of the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria (General Declaration), 19 January 1981.
- International Law Commission, 2001, Draft Articles on Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts