Immunity of Iran Central Bank Assets in the U.S.: A Case Study of Peterson v. Central Bank of Iran

Sovereign immunity, which includes both types of jurisdictional immunity and immunity from attachment and execution of property of a foreign state, despites its variations in recent decades, is still fully applied in any sovereign act, but not in some aspects such as commercial activities of a foreign state and its extraterritorial torts. Following the adoption of restrictive immunity and in consequence of the enactment of Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act in 1976, the Congress has expanded the list of sovereign immunity exceptions. In recent years, relying on the provisions of this Act and other similar enactments, U.S. Federal Courts have rendered money judgments against the government of I. R. of Iran and its agencies for payment of more than 12 billion dollars as compensatory and punitive damages in favor of the U.S. plaintiffs. For the purpose of enforcement of these judgments, US courts have issued some attachment and execution orders against the assets especially security entitlements owned and/or held by the Central Bank of Iran in the U.S. Considering these facts, this paper aims to explore whether these claims and measures against the state of I. R. of Iran and its agencies especially the Central Bank of Iran are complied with the established rules in international law as well as the governing federal and state laws and regulations in the U.S.; and finally the major contribution is to show what is the best effective solution to submit to the U.S. courts to prevent enforcement of the executions ordered against the assets of the Central Bank of Iran situated in the United States.