Palestine asks Supreme Court to freeze $655 million judgment for terror victims

Already facing an acute financial crisis, Palestinian officials asked the Supreme Court to halt monetary damages for families of terror victims that could leave essential services unfunded.WASHINGTON (CN) — Palestinian officials asked the Supreme Court on Thursday to put a $655.5 million judgment for U.S. families of terror attack victims on hold, warning that enforcement could destabilize government services and jeopardize regional security.The Palestine Liberation Organization says a lower court didn’t have jurisdiction to resurrect the judgment, which was originally thrown out in 2016. And if allowed to be enforced, officials said the Palestinian Authority could collapse, leaving Palestine without a government at a time of internal and regional crisis.“This ‘would plunge the Palestinian economy into a deep recession including a sudden dramatic increase in the already high unemployment rate, and failure of critical social services,’ which ‘would likely fuel anger and frustration, and could lead to widespread violence in the West Bank’ and harm ‘the security situation of neighboring Israel, Jordan and Egypt — key U.S. allies,’” the group wrote in its emergency application.The judgment stems from claims brought by the families of U.S. nationals killed in terror attacks in Israel between 2001 and 2004. A jury awarded victims $218.5 million in damages under the Anti-Terrorism Act, which trebled to $655.5 million, but an appeals court overturned the award based on lack of standing.Congress responded with legislation, setting conditions for when Palestine can be sued via the Anti-Terrorism Clarification Act, and enacting the Promoting Security and Justice for Victims of Terrorism Act.Last year, the Supreme Court upheld the law in a unanimous decision, ruling that Palestinian officials could be brought into American courts to defend personal injury suits brought by victims of terror attacks.On remand, an appeals court reinstated the 2016 judgment. But the Palestine Liberation Organization is now challenging that decision, arguing it violated constitutional limits on finality.“Review and reversal are reasonably likely because the decision below marks the first time any United States court has resurrected a void judgment that had become final, sidestepping bedrock constitutional principles of due process and separation of powers,” the PLO wrote. “The money judgment at issue became a legal nullity when [the families’] appeals were exhausted in 2018.”According to the organization, there is a reasonable probability the Supreme Court will review whether the judgment was erroneously revived. As such, they argued the current litigation should be paused while their certiorari petition is pending.The latest Israel-Palestine conflict sparked by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack launched a humanitarian crisis as Israel responded with a relentless military campaign that displaced 1.7 million people in Gaza alone. And despite a ceasefire agreement last year, ongoing military operations and settler violence in Gaza and the West Bank continue to leave many Palestinians without basic necessities.The Palestinian economy is also facing a deepening financial crisis as it accumulates billions in debt.Officials say the $655.5 million judgment would cover a third of annual wages, salaries and pensions for all public employees in Palestine. And without those funds, Palestine says those critical services will go unfunded.“Clinics, hospitals, and schools are already closing for lack of funds, and public employees are working without pay, leading to dangerous political, security, and economic instability,” the PLO wrote. “Immediate enforcement would devastate the remaining public safety, security, the judicial system, health care, public schools, public works, communications, transportation, and reconstruction.”The Supreme Court did not immediately ask for a response to the application.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads