Tweet
ARMENIANS EXPRESS DISMAY OVER "GENOCIDE INSURANCE" COURT DECISION
http://hetq.am/en/diaspora/14924/
2009/0 8/25 | 12:13
Diaspora
A state law allowing heirs of victims of the Armenian genocide
to sue in state courts for unpaid insurance benefits was deemed
unconstitutional last week by a federal appeals court, setting off
a wave of local reaction.
A divided three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on
Thursday nullified the state law that allowed descendants of Armenian
genocide victims killed by the Ottoman Empire to request payment on
the life-insurance policies of relatives.
The panel said in its 2-1 decision that the law amounted to
unconstitutional interfering in U.S. foreign policy.
The same panel one day prior used similar reasoning to strike down a
state law meant to aid the inheritors of artwork allegedly stolen by
Nazis. Both of the laws extended the statute of limitations to file
claims to Dec. 31, 2010.
"Our position is it's not just a stretch, it's bordering on ludicrous,"
said Brian S. Kabateck, a Los Angeles lawyer representing the
plaintiffs, and whose maternal grandparents died in the genocide. "I
think these judges - the two judges that ruled against us - saw
it wrong."
Glendale priest Vazken Movsesian of St. Peter Armenian Church -
joined by the thousands of Armenians whose relatives were among the
1.5 million killed between 1915 and 1923 - filed their case six years
ago. The group sought a settlement of claims under policies issued by
German insurers Victoria Versicherung and Ergo Versicherungsgruppe,
as well as parent company Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG.
Rep. Adam Schiff, who as an assemblyman co-wrote the overturned
law, said he found the court's reasoning perplexing. "It's very,
very peculiar logic," he said. "I was very distressed to read the
opinion, and I think it's an awful result." Kabateck, who indicated
he would appeal, said there is no conflict between the state law and
federal policy.
"The state has the right to reflect the will of its citizens, and in
this case it has already reflected that with laws that were passed,"
said Zanku Armenian, chairman of the Armenian National Committee
Glendale chapter. "A crime was committed back in 1915. What we are
trying to do is make sure that the U.S. government does not outsource
its foreign policy to a foreign government, in this case, Turkey. The
judges' decisions in essence make the same mistake as the president
and the State Department."
"Clearly there was political pressure brought on these judges to
rule the way they did," Armenian said. "If the U.S. says 'enough,'
what's going to happen? The Turkish denial machine would crumble;
it would force them to start dealing with the truth."
http://hetq.am/en/diaspora/14924/
2009/0 8/25 | 12:13
Diaspora
A state law allowing heirs of victims of the Armenian genocide
to sue in state courts for unpaid insurance benefits was deemed
unconstitutional last week by a federal appeals court, setting off
a wave of local reaction.
A divided three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on
Thursday nullified the state law that allowed descendants of Armenian
genocide victims killed by the Ottoman Empire to request payment on
the life-insurance policies of relatives.
The panel said in its 2-1 decision that the law amounted to
unconstitutional interfering in U.S. foreign policy.
The same panel one day prior used similar reasoning to strike down a
state law meant to aid the inheritors of artwork allegedly stolen by
Nazis. Both of the laws extended the statute of limitations to file
claims to Dec. 31, 2010.
"Our position is it's not just a stretch, it's bordering on ludicrous,"
said Brian S. Kabateck, a Los Angeles lawyer representing the
plaintiffs, and whose maternal grandparents died in the genocide. "I
think these judges - the two judges that ruled against us - saw
it wrong."
Glendale priest Vazken Movsesian of St. Peter Armenian Church -
joined by the thousands of Armenians whose relatives were among the
1.5 million killed between 1915 and 1923 - filed their case six years
ago. The group sought a settlement of claims under policies issued by
German insurers Victoria Versicherung and Ergo Versicherungsgruppe,
as well as parent company Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft AG.
Rep. Adam Schiff, who as an assemblyman co-wrote the overturned
law, said he found the court's reasoning perplexing. "It's very,
very peculiar logic," he said. "I was very distressed to read the
opinion, and I think it's an awful result." Kabateck, who indicated
he would appeal, said there is no conflict between the state law and
federal policy.
"The state has the right to reflect the will of its citizens, and in
this case it has already reflected that with laws that were passed,"
said Zanku Armenian, chairman of the Armenian National Committee
Glendale chapter. "A crime was committed back in 1915. What we are
trying to do is make sure that the U.S. government does not outsource
its foreign policy to a foreign government, in this case, Turkey. The
judges' decisions in essence make the same mistake as the president
and the State Department."
"Clearly there was political pressure brought on these judges to
rule the way they did," Armenian said. "If the U.S. says 'enough,'
what's going to happen? The Turkish denial machine would crumble;
it would force them to start dealing with the truth."