The US Embassy in Moscow gave Russia a notice to appear in court in connection with a lawsuit filed by former oil giant Yukos shareholders. The shareholders aim to get the US to recognize a Hague Court of Arbitration ruling on a $50 billion settlement for Russia’s illegal expropriation of the company.
The lawsuit was filed by Yukos Universal, as well as the companies Hulley Enterprises and Veteran Petroleum. Preparation of necessary documents in the case was carried out through the US State Department over the course of six months. The documents were handed over to Russia on June 22.
American law gives foreign states two months (60 days) to respond to a lawsuit against it. Thus, Russia has time until August 20 to respond to the 'Yukos' lawsuit in the USA.
In 2006, Moscow's court of arbitration declared Yukos, Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s oil giant, bankrupt. The state-run company Rosneft subsequently purchased 80 percent of the company's assets. Yukos's stakeholders claimed the Russian government had illegally forced the energy company out of business, in order to make state-run Rosneft the country’s largest oil producer.
In July of 2014, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ruled that Russia must pay $50 billion in compensation to former Yukos shareholders.
In addition, the European Court of Human Rights ruled in July 2014 that former Yukos shareholders should receive 1.86 billion euros in a settlement. The ruling came into effect on December 16, and Russia had six months to draw up a compensation plan. In June 2015, the Council of Europe demanded to see a schedule of compensation payments.
Russia refused to abide by any of the court rulings on compensating former Yukos shareholders.
France, Belgium, and Austria have frozen Russian assets in Europe in recent weeks in order to award former shareholders of oil giant Yukos with billions of dollars in compensation.