- The state of Missouri may sue China for hoarding masks and other protective equipment, a judicial panel ruled Wednesday.
- A panel of the Eighth District Court of Appeals otherwise rejected Missouri's position suing sovereign foreign corporations and allowed only the buyout claims to proceed.
- “Missouri's overarching theory is that China took advantage of the world's ignorance about the coronavirus,” Judge David Strass wrote. “Missouri still has to prove it, but it has made a sufficient allegation to advance the claim beyond jurisdictional dismissal of the complaint.”
A Missouri lawsuit accusing China of hoarding masks and other protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic can move forward, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. did.
However, a panel of the U.S. 8th District Court of Appeals dismissed the Missouri lawsuit in its entirety in 2022, finding that federal rules prohibit sovereign foreign corporations from being sued in U.S. courts. It specifically agreed with the lower court's decision. The country blamed the pandemic on Chinese authorities for not taking sufficient measures to slow the spread of the pandemic.
The appeals board found it could only hear allegations that China hoarded personal protective equipment.
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“Missouri's overarching theory is that China took advantage of the world's ignorance about the coronavirus,” Judge David Strass wrote in the ruling. “One of the ways they did that was to manipulate the worldwide personal protective equipment market. Missouri still needs to prove it, but it has not been able to advance the case beyond the jurisdictional dismissal of the complaint. has made a sufficient claim to permit.”
Chief Justice Ravensky Smith disagreed, writing that the entire case should be dismissed.
Republican Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey speaks to reporters after taking the oath of office on January 3, 2023 in Jefferson City, Missouri. (AP Photo/David A. Reeve, File)
“The immunity granted to foreign states under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, while not inviolable, is much stronger and stronger than the claims asserted in this case,” Smith wrote. “It is certainly not strong enough to justify judicial intervention in an area where there are a number of serious political and diplomatic concerns.”
Missouri Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who filed the lawsuit, praised Wednesday's ruling against X (formerly known as Twitter).
He posted that he was “heading back to court to seek relief.”
The lawsuit, filed in April 2020, alleges that Chinese officials are “responsible for the tremendous death, suffering, and economic loss inflicted on the world, including the people of Missouri.”
Neither the Chinese government nor the other Chinese defendants named in the case have responded to the lawsuit in court.
The International Law Advocacy Association and the China International Private Law Association submitted a brief defending China against the lawsuit. Emails and voice messages left by The Associated Press with attorneys for each group were not immediately returned Wednesday.
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China criticized the lawsuit as “highly absurd” and said it had no factual or legal basis. Legal experts have largely criticized the move as a ploy aimed at shifting the blame for the coronavirus pandemic onto China.
