Halkbank's lawsuit statement
Following the US Supreme Court’s decision yesterday, Halkbank announced that the file will be re-evaluated and decided again by the second court of appeal. The statement stated that if the lower court makes an unfavorable decision, the right to appeal to the Supreme Court again is reserved. Halkbank made a statement to KAP following the US Supreme Court’s decision yesterday. It stated that the file will be re-evaluated and decided again by the second court of appeal. The statement stated that if the lower court makes an unfavorable decision, the right to appeal to the Supreme Court again is reserved. The bank’s statement to KAP is as follows; “The US Supreme Court reviewed our application regarding the Halkbank case and ruled by a majority vote on April 19, 2023. In our application, it was claimed that since Halkbank is a state bank; we cannot be tried in the US courts within the scope of the FSIA (Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act) and the common law consisting of the decisions made by the US courts to date. Although the US Supreme Court rejected the first of these arguments, it overturned the decision of the Second Court of Appeals and remanded the file to the Second Court of Appeals for a re-evaluation and re-determination of the case under common law. In the next stage, the Halkbank case will be re-evaluated and re-determined by the Second Court of Appeals in accordance with the Supreme Court’s views. We reserve the right to appeal to the Supreme Court again if the lower court rules against us again.” It was also stated that since the appeal process will continue with the return of the case, the decision to stay the jury trial will continue. Court decision The Supreme Court, which is the last resort in the US, evaluated Halkbank’s application to dismiss the case against it under the “Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act”. According to the decision, the Supreme Court rejected Halkbank’s objection that it was exempt from criminal prosecution under the “Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act”. The Supreme Court ruled that the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Statute does not apply to criminal cases, but asked the New York Court of Appeals to review Halkbank's appeal under common law.