2LT International News
Missouri Attorney-General’s COVID-19 suit against China thrown out by judge
Jul 13, 2022
ST. LOUIS, Missouri: A federal judge threw out a lawsuit that sought to blame China for the COVID-19 pandemic, which was filed by Missouri Republican Attorney-General Eric Schmitt.
In his 38-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Stephen Limbaugh said that in this case, federal rules prohibit a sovereign foreign entity from being sued in American courts.
In the final line of the dismissal order, Limbaugh stated, “All in all, the court has no choice but to dismiss this novel complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.”
Earlier in the opinion, Limbaugh noted that the civil suit against China is one of many filed “amidst the wreckage of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Schmitt’s office said it would appeal the ruling.
Filed in April 2020, the lawsuit alleges that Chinese officials are “responsible for the enormous death, suffering and economic losses they inflicted on the world, including Missourians.”
According to Schmitt, the Chinese government lied about the dangers of the virus and did not do enough to slow its spread.
China said the lawsuit was “very absurd” and has no factual or legal basis, while Schmitt described it as historic.
