The enforcement of international arbitration awards and judgments against sovereign entities and their commercial affiliates presents some of the most complex legal challenges in U.S. courts. These disputes require not only mastery of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, but also a sophisticated understanding of corporate law, international sanctions regimes, and the practical realities of cross-border enforcement and asset recovery. As sovereign wealth funds, state-owned enterprises, and international arbitration awards continue to grow, disputes over U.S.-based assets will only become more sophisticated and consequential. Eimer Stahl possesses the deep experience necessary to litigate these issues, gained from high-stakes sovereign litigation and enforcement proceedings involving tens of billions of dollars in exposure, including representing CITGO Petroleum Corporation in the forced sale of its parent company to satisfy the debts of Venezuela and the Venezuelan state-owned oil company.
Our capabilities include:
FSIA & Sovereign Immunity Disputes
We handle complex questions of sovereign immunity, including FSIA jurisdictional challenges, attachment and execution immunity, and the interpretation and application of immunity exceptions, including in the decade-long effort by creditors in trial and appellate courts to recover on international arbitration awards and judgments against Venezuela.
Alter Ego & Corporate Separateness Litigation
We defend and prosecute claims involving the corporate separateness of sovereign-owned enterprises. This includes alter ego liability, veil-piercing theories under federal and various state laws, and disputes over whether U.S. subsidiaries of state-owned entities should be treated as the sovereign itself for enforcement purposes. We secured complete summary judgment for our client in one of the largest sovereign-linked alter ego cases in U.S. history, eliminating billions of dollars in potential exposure for a state-owned entity.
Asset Attachment & Post-Judgment Enforcement
We litigate disputes over the identification, attachment, and execution against sovereign-linked assets in the United States. Our work includes navigating the FSIA's attachment and execution framework, OFAC sanctions, multi-jurisdictional asset discovery, fraudulent transfer claims, turnover proceedings, creditor priority, complex valuation battles, multi-week evidentiary hearings, and remedies involving commercial property held by state-owned enterprises.
Experience
Representing CITGO Petroleum Corporation in the court-ordered sale of the stock of its parent corporation to satisfy the debts of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and its state-owned oil company PDVSA and in related sovereign debt judgment and international arbitration award enforcement proceedings.
Obtaining summary judgment in favor of a state-owned entity in veil-piercing litigation brought by creditors of a foreign state.
Representing holder of an arbitration award in enforcement and U.S. asset discovery proceedings against an African state.
Representing state-owned entities in garnishment proceedings brought by creditors of a foreign state.
Representing state-owned entities in asset discovery proceedings brought by creditors of a foreign state in federal and state courts in New York and Delaware.
Representing a U.S.-based state-owned entity in its successful efforts to recover assets pledged to a foreign counterparty.
