MSK, Mark Bravin Featured in TWA Judgment Coverage
MSK and International Disputes Chair Mark Bravin were heavily featured in recent media coverage surrounding the $353 million judgment against Iran in connection with the hijacking of TWA Flight 847.
MSK attorneys Matthew Williams and Theresa Bowman have also been mentioned in the coverage.
From Business Wire (March 27, 2019):
"A Washington, D.C. federal judge has entered a $353 million default judgment against Iran for its role in the 1985 hijacking of TWA Flight 847. The commercial airliner was hijacked shortly after takeoff from Athens, Greece, headed to Rome, and then on to Boston and Los Angeles, with 139 passengers aboard, most of whom were Americans. The lawsuit, filed by 108 passengers and family members, was filed under a 2008 statute creating a federal cause of action against foreign states designated as State Sponsors of Terrorism for supporting terrorist attacks. Iran was added to the list in 1984, based on its support for a campaign of terrorist hijackings, bombings and kidnappings largely aimed at American citizens...
...The lawsuit centered on evidence that Iran financed, supported, trained, and guided Hezbollah for the purpose of using terrorist attacks to promote a largely anti-Semitic and anti-American agenda. The U.S. Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act affords plaintiffs the ability to sue a foreign country for damages caused by its sponsorship of terrorist attacks. Similar lawsuits against Iran, Sudan, Syria and North Korea have resulted in judgments for compensatory damages totaling billions of dollars....
...'These families have lived with the trauma of the hijacking for over 30 years with little hope of getting closure,' said plaintiffs’ counsel Mark N. Bravin, partner at Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP (MSK). 'They have now succeeded in holding Iran accountable in a court of law for its role in the hijacking and are entitled to the damages awarded by the court...'
...'The District Court’s decision acknowledges the significant physical and emotional trauma our clients suffered and will enable them to collect at least a portion of the damages awarded to them by the court,' added Bravin...
...In addition to Bravin, plaintiffs were represented by Theresa Bowman and Matthew Williams, also of MSK."
The firm was also mentioned for its role in the case in the “Wake Up Call” column published by Bloomberg Big Law Business on March 27, 2019.
News of the major judgment has since been shared and posted to more 150 online and mobile news partners of Businesswire. Some of these sources include Global Banking & Finance Review and MarketWatch.
This story has also been covered by General Counsel News and Litigation Daily (subscription required).