Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has announced (likely futile) plans to seize Chinese-owned assets across the United States to collect a $24.5 billion judgment against China related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The judgment, handed down Friday by US District Judge Stephen Limbaugh, stems from a lawsuit filed in 2020 claiming China hoarded personal protective equipment during the early months of the pandemic, causing harm to Missouri and its residents.
“We intend to collect every penny by seizing Chinese-owned assets, including Missouri farmland,” Bailey, a Republican, said following the ruling, which he described as a “landmark victory” in holding China accountable for pandemic-related costs.
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Bailey asserted that eligible assets “are not required to be within Missouri and can be located anywhere in the United States,” though experts question this claim.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs promptly rejected the ruling, stating it does not recognize the US court’s jurisdiction in the matter. Chinese officials had previously called the lawsuit “absurd” when it was filed and did not participate in the January trial held in Missouri.
“Using frivolous lawsuits to smear and defame China and shift the blame will never succeed,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that China “has the right to take reciprocal countermeasures in accordance with international law.”
Legal experts expressed skepticism about Missouri’s ability to collect the judgment. Duncan Levin, a former federal prosecutor who has represented foreign nations in US courts, characterized Bailey’s comments as “press release talk.”
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“This is a lot of sort of tough talk that will highly likely fall apart in the details once they get into a courtroom,” Levin said. “Good luck with that.”
Paul Nolette, a political scientist at Marquette University, told AP News that international disputes are typically negotiated through international organizations or addressed by the federal government on behalf of states.
“What was surprising is just seeing such a large judgment coming down in a situation where that sort of authority is very much in question,” Nolette said, adding that “the prospects of money actually changing hands is very slim.”
According to US Department of Agriculture statistics, Chinese interests owned approximately 44,000 acres of farmland in Missouri at the end of 2023, representing just 0.1% of the state’s 44 million acres.
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The lawsuit was initially filed by Bailey’s predecessor, Eric Schmitt, who later won a US Senate seat. Judge Limbaugh had originally dismissed the case in 2022, ruling that Missouri couldn’t sue China under laws shielding foreign nations from US lawsuits. However, an appeals court allowed one part of the lawsuit, which was alleging hoarding, to proceed.
When Chinese officials didn’t respond to the case, Limbaugh accepted Missouri’s estimate of damages exceeding $8 billion, tripled it as allowed by federal law, and added 3.91% interest until collected.
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