Toumazou v. Republic of Turkey

Last updated
Toumazou et al v. Republic of Turkey et al
Toumazou et al v. Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
CourtUnited States District Court for the District of Columbia [1]
Full case name
  • Toumazou et al v. Republic of Turkey et al
  • Toumazou et al v. Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Court membership
Judge sittingPaul L. Friedman [2] [3] [4]
Keywords
Greek Cypriot diaspora, TRNC Representative Offices in the United States, HSBC Bank USA, Eleni Foka.

Toumazou et al. v. Republic of Turkey et al., [2] was a class action suit by Greek Cypriots and others against the TRNC Representative Offices in the United States and HSBC Bank USA. Turkey was dropped as defendant on 16 February 2010 and the lawsuit name was subsequently revised to Toumazou et al. v. Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The TRNC Representative Offices are a commercial entity because the United States does not formally recognise the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The staff of the Representative Offices do not have diplomatic visas and only operate within the United States using business visas. Tsimpedes Law in Washington DC sued for "the denial of access to and enjoyment of land and property held in the north". The lawsuit, originally initiated by Cypriots displaced during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, was joined by non-Cypriots who paid for but have never been given legal title to properties that they have purchased. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]

Contents

Participation

More than 100 people living in the United States, the United Kingdom, Cyprus and Greece filed to participate in this class action. Foreign nationals and foreign organizations are legally allowed to sue in American courts. The municipality of Karavas, as well as Eleni Foka, the primary school teacher who had sued Turkey at the European Court of Human Rights for violating her human rights, also joined the suit. [13]

Historical context

When the Republic of Turkey invaded the Republic of Cyprus in 1974 many thousands of Cypriots were displaced from their homes and their land and have since been prevented from enjoying their use.

Since 1974, homes have been built on land that is still owned by displaced Cypriots and those new homes have been sold to buyers, who may not have known that the land that the homes were built on was still owned by displaced Cypriots.

Parties

Plaintiffs

The plaintiffs were Michalis Toumazou, Nicolas Kantzilaris, and Maroulla Tompazou. [2] The class action was to be brought on behalf of all displaced Cypriots, and others, who are victims of alleged property crimes committed by the commercial entity called the TRNC (representing the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a country which is not recognized by the United States) and HSBC Bank USA's participation in the alleged laundering of funds for that commercial entity. Originally initiated by displaced Cypriots from the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, the class action was joined by Sandra Kocinski, Pat Clarke, and Suz Latchford who paid for but have never been given legal title to the villas that they purchased. [5]

Defendants

The named defendants were HSBC Bank USA, N.A., [14] HSBC Group, [14] HSBC Holdings PLC, [14] Mehmet Ali Talat, [14] and TRNC. [2] [14] Turkey was dropped as defendant on 16 February 2010 and the lawsuit name was subsequently revised to Toumazou et al v. Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. [14]

Decision

On 30 September 2014, the court dismissed the case with prejudice for lack of jurisdiction. [15] [16]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Greek Cypriots sue Turkey for $400b in US court, by Sebastian Heller, Cyprus Mail, December 18, 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "TOUMAZOU et al v. REPUBLIC OF TURKEY et al Case number 1:2009cv01967". Justia.
  3. ↑ "CJRA Table 7W––Report Of Civil Cases Pending Over Three Years For Period Ending March 31, 2013" (PDF). DC Circuit. Torts to Land TOUMAZOU et al v. TURKISH REPUBLIC OF NORTHERN CYPRUS 10/19/2012 B Opinion/Decision in Draft 0 9 c v 0 1 9 6 7 Torts to Land TOUMAZOU et al v. TURKISH REPUBLIC OF NORTHERN CYPRUS 10/19/2012 Q Complexity of Case
  4. ↑ "CJRA Table 8W––Report Of Motions Pending Over Six Months For Period Ending September 30, 2012" (PDF). DC Circuit Civil Justice Reform Act . Nature of Suit Case Title Motion Text Status Status Description Torts to Land TOUMAZOU et al v. TURKISH REPUBLIC OF NORTHERN CYPRUS MOTION to Dismiss for Lack of Jurisdiction B Opinion/Decision in Draft MOTION for Leave to File Third Amended Complain B Opinion/Decision in Draft MOTION to Dismiss B Opinion/Decision in Draft
  5. 1 2 "Buyers of property in the north join US lawsuit", NorthCyprusDaily.com, 17 January 2010.
  6. ↑ RYAN ABBOTT (May 30, 2012). "Rolled in North Cyprus, Homeowner Class Says". Courthouse News Service .
  7. ↑ George Jackson (August 3, 2012). "DC attorney leads class-action suit against HSBC". Channel 7 ABC News.
  8. ↑ "Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 09-12-17: US COURT - GREEK CYPRIOT LAWSUIT - TURKEY". hri.org, Cyprus News Agency .
  9. ↑ KATHERINE EASTLAND (Oct 19, 2009). "A New Lawsuit against Turkey". The Weekly Standard . Archived from the original on November 11, 2009.
  10. ↑ "US lawyer sues Turkey in DC court over Cyprus: NICOSIA, Cyprus – The Associated Press". Hurriyet Daily News Associated Press. 2009-12-17.
  11. ↑ "U.S. Lawyer Goes After Turkey for Selling Greek Cypriot Homes". The National Herald . October 25, 2010.
  12. ↑ Jamie Dunkley, Financial Services Correspondent (22 Jul 2012). "HSBC facing North Cyprus legal battle". The Daily Telegraph .{{cite news}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  13. ↑ 'TRNC' targeted as a commercial enterprise, by Elias Hazou, Cyprus Mail, 23 February 2011.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "TOUMAZOU et al v. TURKISH REPUBLIC OF NORTHERN CYPRUS". Law360.
  15. ↑ Abbott, Ryan (13 October 2014). "Property Spat Over Turk- Controlled Cyprus Fails". Courthouse News Service. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  16. ↑ "TOUMAZOU et al v. REPUBLIC OF TURKEY et al". Justia. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
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