SOME RECOGNITION CASES

Name and State

Facts Rulings and Notes

The Helena (UK)1801

The Helena, a British ship, was seized by the Barbary Pirates and turned over them to the Dey of Algiers, who then sold the vessel. The original owners sued to recover. The Dey of Algiers was recognized by the British government.

- A transfer of property by the act of a recognized government will be upheld.

Luther v Sagor (UK)1921

See Cases and Materials - A transfer of property by the act of an unrecognized government will not be upheld.

- (On appeal) Once a government is recognized, its acts will be granted validity, even those prior to its recognition (i.e., retroactive effect of recognition).

Salimoff v Standard Oil (US)1933

See Cases and Materials - Acts of an unrecognized government have no extra-territorial effect.

- But, they do hold for their own nationals and their property within their own territory.

- NB: if US nationals had lost property, the rights of aliens would be involved.

Wulfsohn v RSFSR(US)1923

See Cases and Materials - An unrecognized government has immunity from suit for actions regarding property in its own territory.

- NB: Generally, immunity from suit would be denied, since immunity is an act of comity, and there is no comity in the absence of recognition. In this case, however, the plaintiff (Wulfsohn) admitted that

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there was a de facto government in actual control in its territory, even if it was not recognized. Note also that the property in question was not in the court’s jurisdiction.

RSFSR v Cibrario (US)1923

See Cases and Materials - An unrecognized government has no standing to sue in the court of the state refusing recognition: standing to sue is an act of comity, and there is no comity in the absence of recognition.

TAAG v Ronair1982

See Cases and Materials - The court allowed TAAG, a state-owned airline, to sue, despite the fact that the Angolan government had not been recognized, because there was no objection on the part of the US Executive Branch.

Haile Selassie v Cable and Wireless (UK)1938

The Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie, sued to recover a debt owed to the Ethiopia state. As this was going on, following the Italian conquest of Ethiopia, the UK recognized the King of Italy as ruler of Ethiopia.

- Once de jure recognition was given to the King of Italy as the ruler of Ethiopia, the previous Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie, lost his standing to sue to recover a debt owed to the Ethiopian state.

The Arantzazu Mendi(UK)1939

During the Spanish Civil War, the UK recognized de jure the Republican government of Spain, but also recognized de facto the rebel government (the Nationalists). Both governments sued in British courts to control the Spanish-flagged vessel Arantzazu Mendi, then in a British port.

- A de facto government has control over state assets within the territory it controls. A de jure government has control even over state assets abroad.

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Gdynia Ameryka Line v Boguslawski (UK)1950

At the start of WWII, the government of Poland fled to exile in the UK. On June 28, 1945, a Soviet-backed government of Poland was created as the de facto government of Poland, in Lublin. On July 4-5, 1945, the UK withdrew de jure recognition from the government in exile in London and gave it to the Lublin government. A question arose as to the retroactive effects of Lublin’s regulations regarding the Polish merchant marine on those of the London government on shipping under its (London’s) control.

- The House of Lords (where the case was ultimately decided) ruled that the effect of the withdrawal of recognition from the London government and the de jure recognition of the Lublin government would not have a retroactive effect on shipping outside of the realm of control of the Lublin government. (I.e., the regulations of the London government would be deemed effective up to July 4-5, 1945).

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