Missouri plans to seize assets to make China pay a $24.5 billion judgment, but can it collect?

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri's lawyer wide is threatening to prehend Chinese assets crossed the U.S. to cod $24.5 cardinal awarded successful a suit against China stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, but experts were skeptical Monday, with 1 saying, “Good luck with that.”

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said this week that it does not admit a U.S. national judge's caller ruling siding with Missouri's assertion that China hoarded idiosyncratic protective instrumentality during the pandemic, harming the authorities and its residents. China called the suit “absurd” erstwhile it was filed successful 2020, during the aboriginal months of the pandemic, and it did not enactment successful a little proceedings held successful Missouri successful January.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, hailed Friday's ruling from U.S. District Judge Stephen Limbaugh arsenic a “landmark victory” successful efforts to clasp China, its Communist Party and 7 different authorities oregon technological agencies liable for the costs of the pandemic successful the U.S. If China won't wage the award, the authorities volition prehend Chinese-owned assets, including farmland, Bailey said.

“Those assets are not required to beryllium wrong Missouri and tin beryllium located anyplace successful the United States,” Bailey said successful a connection Monday. “While we person not partnered with different states connected this peculiar suit, we promote others to enactment to clasp the Chinese authorities accountable and question justness for victims."

International organizations typically negociate specified disagreements, oregon the national authorities volition instrumentality ineligible enactment connected behalf of a state, said Paul Nolette, a Marquette University governmental scientist. He said a authorities acting connected its ain could beryllium a occupation because, "that tin truly complicate relationships betwixt the countries.”

He added, “The prospects of wealth really changing hands is precise slim.”

Duncan Levin, a erstwhile national and authorities authoritative successful New York City who's represented overseas nations successful U.S. courts, described Bailey's comments arsenic “press merchandise talk.”

According to the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture Statistics, Chinese interests owned astir 44,000 acres (17,800 hectares) of farmland successful Missouri astatine the extremity of 2023 — one-tenth of 1% of the state’s 44 cardinal acres. Bailey said helium volition enactment with President Donald Trump’s medication to place Chinese assets successful the state.

But Levin said it's not wide that the Chinese authorities oregon the different defendants successful the lawsuit — arsenic opposed to Chinese individuals oregon companies — really ain thing successful Missouri. He doubts Bailey has the authorization to prehend assets extracurricular Missouri, and adjacent claiming assets that tin beryllium seized could instrumentality time, helium said.

“Good luck with that,” Levin said. “This is simply a batch of benignant of pugnacious speech that volition highly apt autumn isolated successful the details erstwhile they get into a courtroom."

The suit was filed by Bailey's predecessor arsenic lawyer general, Eric Schmitt, a blimpish Republican similar Bailey, who past won a U.S. Senate spot successful 2022. Bailey was Republican Gov. Mike Parson's apical attorney, and Parson appointed him lawyer wide erstwhile Schmitt near the office.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said this week that its actions during the pandemic aren't taxable to the jurisdiction of American courts. It besides decried what it called “malicious maltreatment of lawsuits" and added, "Using frivolous lawsuits to smear and defame China and displacement the blasted volition ne'er succeed.”

“We inquire the United States to instrumentality to rationality and close its mistakes,” the connection said. “China has the close to instrumentality reciprocal countermeasures successful accordance with planetary instrumentality to safeguard its morganatic rights and interests."

The ministry's connection wasn't much circumstantial astir the Chinese government's imaginable response, but Levin said it could enforce sanctions connected Missouri companies doing concern successful China oregon instrumentality enactment against them successful the Chinese courts.

Nolette said, “What was astonishing is conscionable seeing specified a ample judgement coming down successful a concern wherever that benignant of authorization is precise overmuch successful question: whether a authorities has the benignant of authorization to writer and question judgments from different countries."

Limbaugh, sitting successful Cape Girardeau, astir 120 miles (193 kilometers) southeast of St. Louis on the Mississippi River, initially dismissed the lawsuit, ruling successful 2022 that Missouri couldn't writer China oregon the different defendants nether a instrumentality that mostly shields overseas nations from lawsuits successful U.S. courts.

However, Missouri appealed, and an appeals tribunal said 1 portion of its suit could proceed — alleging hoarding. When Chinese officials didn’t respond, Limbaugh accepted Missouri’s estimation of past and imaginable aboriginal damages of much than $8 billion, tripled it arsenic national instrumentality allows, and added 3.91% involvement until it’s collected.

“We mean to cod each penny by seizing Chinese-owned assets, including Missouri farmland,” Bailey said aft the ruling.

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Hanna reported from Topeka, Kansas. Associated Press Greater China News Director Emily Wang, successful Beijing, and Associated Press writer Fu Ting successful Washington, D.C., besides contributed reporting.