Thursday, April 03, 2014

Cultural Heritage Lawyer Rick St. Hillaire reports on the Gettleman decision

Cultural Heritage Lawyer Rick St. Hillaire reports the Gettleman decision

"The Law Cited by Plaintiffs Does Not Offer the Remedy They Seek" - Rubin v. Iran

Thursday, April 3, 2014
"The court recognizes the tragic circumstances that gave rise to the instant action, but finds that the law cited by plaintiffs does not offer the remedy they seek." With these words, Judge Robert Gettleman ended the Northern District of Illinois case of Jenny Rubin, et al. v. Islamic Republic of Iran, et al. v. The University of Chicago and The Field Museum of Natural History.

The case involves American victims of a Hamas suicide bombing in Jerusalem in 1997. A federal judge in Washington, DC in 2003 awarded the plaintiffs a $71.5 million default judgment against Iran, holding that country to be responsible for the attack. One way the plaintiffs have sought to collect the judgment is to acquire ancient Iranian artifacts at prominent American Museums, including Chicago's Oriental Institute (OI) and The Field Museum, through attachment. [Read the rest]







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