The Supreme Court has agreed to intervene in a long-standing dispute between Hungary and Holocaust survivors seeking compensation for property confiscated during World War II. The survivors, all over 90 years old, along with heirs of survivors, filed the lawsuit 14 years ago, alleging that Hungary unlawfully took their property.
The central issue in the case is whether an American court is the appropriate venue for the lawsuit. While sovereign nations like Hungary are typically immune from lawsuits in U.S. courts under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, there is an exception for cases involving 'property taken in violation of international law.'
Lower courts have grappled with how this exception applies in the current case. In a related 2021 decision involving Germany and the Guelph Treasure, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Germany, setting a precedent that could impact similar lawsuits related to property taken from Jews during the Nazi era.
The survivors initially filed the lawsuit in 2010 with the intention of pursuing a class-action case against Hungary and its railway on behalf of all Hungarian Holocaust survivors and family members of victims. The railway played a significant role in the genocide by transporting over 400,000 Hungarian Jews to the Auschwitz death camp in Poland in 1944.
The Supreme Court's decision to hear arguments in the fall marks the latest development in this complex legal battle, which has spanned over a decade. The outcome of this case could have far-reaching implications for future claims related to property confiscated during one of the darkest chapters in human history.
