Holocaust Restitution

by Bazyler, Michael J.

• ISBN13: 9780814799437
• ISBN10: 0814799434
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-03-30
• Publisher: New York Univ Pr

Summary

View the Table of Contents. Read the Introduction.Bazyler and Alford have produced an essential tool for understanding the righteous struggle to win restitution for Holocaust victims and their heirs. --Richard Z. Chesnoff, author of Pack of Thieves: How Hitler & Europe Plundered the Jews & Committed The Greatest Theft In HistoryThis excellent volume makes a significant contribution both to legal studies and to the history of the Holocaust. The editors deserve special praise for including chapters by Holocaust survivors, assuring that their often-forgotten voices are not lost within the great debate about Holocaust restitution.--Marilyn J. Harran, Stern Chair in Holocaust History, Chapman UniversityAn invaluable text for students and scholars as well as a fascinating read for all those concerned with Holocaust and genocide issues in all disciplines and on behalf of all victims.--Israel W. Charny, President, International Association of Genocide Scholars This unique collection is important in bringing together the perspectives of legal practitioners, activists, archivists and historians, negotiators, and survivors. It is remarkably comprehensive.... The editors have not shied away from controversy.--David Cesarani, Research Professor in History, Royal Holloway, University of LondonIf there is a 'final frontier' in understanding the Holocaust, it is the assessment of international litigation, compensation, and reparations claims. This extraordinary group of contributions thoughtfully reflects on the Holocaust, past and present, as well as what many would call 'imperfect justice.'--Stephen Feinstein, Professor of History and Director, Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, University of MinnesotaThis collection of essays on Holocaust restitution litigation provides a wonderful overview of the subject. áBazyler and Alford have assembled the 'A ist' and the result is a most authoritative and complete treatment.--Professor William A. Schabas, Director, Irish Centre for Human RightsHolocaust Restitution is the first volume to present the Holocaust restitution movement directly from the viewpoints of the various parties involved in the campaigns and settlements. Now that the Holocaust restitution claims are closed, this work enjoys the benefits of hindsight to provide a definitive assessment of the movement.From lawyers and state department officials to survivors and heads of key institutes involved in the negotiations, the volume brings together the central players in the Holocaust restitution movement, both pro and con. The volume examines the claims against European banks and against Germany and Austria relating to forced labor, insurance claims, and looted art claims. It considers their significance, their legacy, and the moral issues involved in seeking and receiving restitution.Contributors: Roland Bank, Michael Berenbaum, Lee Boyd, Thomas Buergenthal, Monica S. Dugot, Stuart E. Eizenstat, Eric Freedman and Richard Weisberg, Si Frumkin, Peter Hayes, Kai Henning, Roman Kent, Lawrence Kill and Linda Gerstel, Edward R. Korman, Otto Graf Lambsdorff, David A. Lash and Mitchell A. Kamin, Hannah Lessing and Fiorentina Azizi, Burt Neuborne, Owen C. Pell, Morris Ratner and Caryn Becker, Shimon Samuels, E. Randol Schoenberg, William Z. Slany, Howard N. Spiegler, Deborah Sturman, Robert A. Swift, Gideon Taylor, Lothar Ulsamer, Melvyn I. Weiss, Roger M. Witten, Sidney Zabludoff, and Arie Zuckerman.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xi
Holocaust Restitution Timeline	xiii
Introduction	1	(16)
Michael J. Bazyler and Roger P. Alford
PART I: Overview
1 International Law and the Holocaust	17	(13)
Thomas Buergenthal
2 The State Department, Nazi Gold, and the Search for Holocaust Assets	30	(13)
William Z. Slany
3 Confronting History: Restitution and the Historians	43	(7)
Michael Berenbaum
4 Holocaust Litigation and Human Rights Jurisprudence	50	(10)
Robert A. Swift
5 A Tale of Two Cities: Administering the Holocaust Settlements in Brooklyn and Berlin	60	(20)
Burt Neuborne
6 How Swiss Banks and German Companies Came to Terms with the Wrenching Legacies of the Holocaust and World War II: A Defense Perspective	80	(12)
Roger M. Witten
7 Why Won't These SOBs Give Me My Money? A Survivor's Perspective	92	(11)
Si Frumkin
PART II: The Bank Litigation
8 A Litigator's Postscript to the Swiss Banks and Holocaust Litigation Settlements: How Justice Was Served	103	(12)
Melvyn I. Weiss
9 Rewriting the Holocaust History of the Swiss Banks: A Growing Scandal	115	(18)
Edward R. Korman
10 The French Holocaust-Era Claims Process	133	(12)
Eric Freedman and Richard Weisberg
11 The French Bank Holocaust Settlement	145	(7)
Shimon Samuels
12 Unholy Profits: Holocaust Restitution and the Vatican Bank	152	(11)
Lee Boyd
PART III: The Slave Labor Litigation
13 Where Morality Meets Money	163	(7)
Gideon Taylor
14 The Negotiations on Compensation for Nazi Forced Laborers	170	(11)
Otto Graf Lambsdorff
15 German Economy and the Foundation Initiative: An Act of Solidarity for Victims of National Socialism	181	(9)
Lothar Ulsamer
16 Processing of Claims for Slave and Forced Labor: Expediency versus Accuracy?	190	(7)
Roland Bank
17 Corporate Profits and the Holocaust: A Dissent from the Monetary Argument	197	(8)
Peter Hayes
18 It's Not about the Money: A Survivor's Perspective on the German Foundation Initiative	205	(10)
Roman Kent
19 Germany's Reexamination of Its Past through the Lens of the Holocaust Litigation	215	(11)
Deborah Sturman
20 Austria Confronts Her Past	226	(13)
Hannah Lessing and Fiorentina Azizi
PART IV: The Insurance Litigation
21 Holocaust-Era Insurance Claims: Legislative, Judicial, and Executive Remedies	239	(12)
Lawrence Kill and Linda Gerstel
22 The Road to Compensation of Life Insurance Policies: The Foundation Law and ICHEIC	251	(9)
Kai Hennig
23 ICHEIC: Excellent Concept but Inept Implementation	260	(11)
Sidney Zabludoff
PART V: The Looted Art Litigation
24 The Holocaust Claims Processing Office: New York State's Approach to Resolving Holocaust-Era Art Claims	271	(9)
Monica S. Dugot
25 Portrait of Wally: The U.S. Government's Role in Recovering Holocaust Looted Art	280	(8)
Howard N. Spiegler
26 Whose Art Is It Anyway?	288	(9)
E. Randol Schoenberg
PART VI: The Litigation's Legacy
27 The Unfinished Business of the Unfinished Business of World War II	297	(18)
Stuart E. Eizenstat
28 Poor Justice: Holocaust Restitution and Forgotten, Indigent Survivors	315	(7)
David A. Lash and Mitchell A. Kamin
29 The Holocaust Restitution Enterprise: An Israeli Perspective	322	(9)
Arie Zuckerman
30 Historical Reparation Claims: The Defense Perspective	331	(14)
Owen C. Pell
31 The Legacy of Holocaust Class Action Suits: Have They Broken Ground for Other Cases of Historical Wrongs?	345	(12)
Morris Ratner and Caryn Becker
About the Contributors	357	(6)
Index	363	(11)
About the Editors	374
Website: www.holocaustlitigation.com