Ministry of Defense and Support for the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran v. Dariush Elahi (556 U.S. 366)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided April 21, 2009 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 556 U.S. 366 · 129 S. Ct. 1732
- Decided
- April 21, 2009
- Term
- October Term 2008
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority author
- Justice Breyer
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
Opinion excerpt
Justice Breyer delivered the opinion of the Court. Dariush Elahi, the respondent, sued Iran, claiming that Iran unlawfully participated in the assassination of his brother, and he obtained a default judgment of about $312 million. Seeking to collect some of the money, he has tried to attach an asset belonging to Iran, namely, a $2.8 million judgment that Iran obtained against a California company called Cubic Defense Systems, Inc. (Cubic Judgment). Iran has asserted a defense of sovereign immunity in order to prevent the attachment. See Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, 28 U. S. C. § 1610. Since Iran is a sovereign nation, Elahi cannot attach the Cubic Judgment unless he finds an exception to the principle of sovereign immunity that would allow him to do so. See Ministry of Defense and Support for Armed Forces of Islamic Republic of Iran v. Elahi, 546 U. S. 450 (2006) (per curiam). As the case reaches us, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 (TRIA), § 201(a), 116 Stat. 2337, note following 28 U. S. C. § 1610, provides the sole possible exception. That Act authorizes holders of terrorism-related judgments against Iran, such as Elahi, to attach Iranian assets that the United States has “blocked.” Ibid, (emphasis added). And we initially decide whether Iran’s Cubic Judgment is a “blocked asset” within the terms of that Act. Even if the Cubic Judgment is a blocked…
Excerpt of a 52,466-character opinion. The full text and citation network load in the interactive viewer above.