Argentina Sues U.S. in International Court ...
Argentina Sues U.S. in International Court of Justice Over Debt Dispute
Court Can Hear the Case Only If the U.S. Consents
Updated Aug. 7, 2014 6:26 p.m. ET
BUENOS AIRES--Argentina has asked the International Court of Justice to hear a lawsuit it wants to bring against the U.S. in a high-stakes legal battle between the South American nation and some of its creditors over unpaid debts.
Argentina's petition says that decisions by U.S. courts in the dispute have violated its sovereignty, The Hague-based tribunal said Thursday.
However, the U.S. would have to accept the International Court of Justice's jurisdiction for a lawsuit to move forward, something that has happened in only 22 cases since the tribunal began working in 1946.
The Obama administration is unlikely to grant the request in the absence of a bi-lateral treaty that would require the U.S. to accept the court as a venue to hear disputes with Argentina, said Paz Zarate, an international law expert at Oxford Analytica.
"From the point of view of the U.S. government, the New York court system has dealt with a contractual dispute in which the executive [branch] cannot intervene. It's a dispute governed by a contract, not by a treaty or international law," Mrs. Zarate said.
The International Court of Justice-- a United Nations tribunal that handles disputes between countries --has transmitted Argentina's request to the U.S. government. The U.S. State Department didn't respond to requests for comment.
Argentina defaulted on some of its restructured debt July 30 after marathon talks with hedge funds suing to collect on bonds the country stopped paying in 2001 ended without a deal. Argentina had deposited the money with the bond trustee bank, but U.S. District Judge Thomas Griesa blocked its distribution to investors because Argentina ignored his ruling to also pay the hedge funds. The default could eventually affect almost $29 billion in Argentine debt.
Argentine officials say the country isn't in default because it paid on time, and that bondholders should pressure trustee Bank of New York MellonBK -2.31% to deposit their money.
Argentina's Debt Standoff
The Kirchner administration probably knows the U.S. will decline its invitation to be sued at The Hague, but hopes this strategy might open the door to some sort of diplomatic solution down the road, said Luis Moreno Ocampo, a former chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court.
"Argentina is looking for a solution knowing there is no way to formally appeal Griesa's ruling, which it considers unjust," Mr. Moreno Ocampo said in an interview.
Argentine President Cristina Kirchner's government has adopted a more aggressive legal strategy following last week's default. The Kirchner administration made good on its pledge to seek multi-lateral judicial aid with Thursday's petition to the International Court of Justice. Her ministers have also accused Judge Griesa of bias and demanded he replace Daniel Pollack --the mediator appointed to oversee talks between the two parties--on the grounds he was incompetent.
Judge Griesa, who earlier this week confirmed Mr. Pollack in his role as mediator, called a hearing Friday at 3 p.m. EDT.
Argentina's latest default dates back to its decision to repudiate about $100 billion in debt during a deep economic crisis in 2001. After years of confrontation with creditors, investors exchanged almost 93% of their defaulted bonds for new securities in heavily discounted restructurings in 2005 and 2010 that gave them just 33 cents on the dollar.
But some investors refused to take the new bonds, with many suing in U.S. courts for full repayment. These included hedge funds led by Elliott Management Corp.'s NML Capital Ltd. and Aurelius Capital Management LP, which have won about $1.6 billion after years of litigation.
U.S. courts had jurisdiction over these lawsuits because Argentina had agreed in some of its bond contracts to resolve any disputes under New York law.
Judge Griesa issued his unprecedented 2012 ruling in a case involving NML and Aurelius that barred Argentina from paying its restructured bondholders unless it also pays the holdouts. That ruling was upheld by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court in June declined to hear Argentina's appeal.
Argentine officials have questioned the integrity of the U.S. courts and government in a case that is being closely watched by investors, academics and activists because of the precedents it might set for future sovereign debt restructurings.
Mrs. Kirchner's cabinet chief, Jorge Capitanich, said Thursday "the rule of law doesn't exist in the U.S." because a judge can block bond payments that are the property of third parties not involved in the case.
Economy Minister Axel Kicillof, who last week flew to New York for direct negotiations with hedge funds he calls "vultures" expressed his frustration this week with the Obama administration's unwillingness to take a more active role in the matter.
"Why doesn't the U.S. government intervene?...put limits on this judge," he said in a radio interview.