[URBAN NOTE] "Iran ordered to turn over North York house to U.S. victims of terror"

[rfmcdonald]

I blogged in September 2014 about how a suburban Toronto house, allegedly owned by the Iranian state, was among the Canadian properties. being claimed by victims of Iran-sponsored terrorism under Canadian law. Jacques Gallant just noted in the Toronto Star that it has been claimed.

The tiny house on Sheppard Ave. W. may be vacant and run-down, but the story behind it is replete with terrorism, international intrigue and diplomatic headaches.

An Ontario court found that the building — as well as another empty property in Ottawa and two bank accounts — is owned by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

And last week, a Toronto judge dismissed the country’s arguments of state immunity from seizure of property and ordered that the assets be turned over to American victims of Iran-sponsored terrorism who have won cases against Iran in U.S. courts.

The complex case and subsequent ruling comes as the federal government is looking to re-establish diplomatic relations with Tehran that were cut off by the Conservative government in 2012.

It also highlights the little-known fact that federal legislation allows for victims of state-sponsored terrorism from other countries, and their families, to ask Canadian courts to seize Iranian assets here if they can prove their case.