Collapse to view only § 1631j. Fees of agents, attorneys, or representatives

§ 1631. Definitions
As used in this subchapter the term—
(1) “Person” means a natural person, partnership, association, other unincorporated body, corporation, or body politic.
(2) “Property” means any property, right, or interest.
(3) “Treaty of peace”, with respect to a country, means the treaty of peace with that country signed at Paris, France, February 10, 1947, which came into force between that country and the United States on September 15, 1947.
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 201, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 562.)
§ 1631a. Property owned by Bulgaria, Hungary, and Rumania or any national thereof
(a) Vesting of property; liquidation; disposition of net proceeds
(b) Net proceeds of property vested in Alien Property Custodian or Attorney General
(c) Determination of ownership by natural person of vested property
(d) Furnishing of information; production of books and records
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 202, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 562.)
§ 1631b. Cancellation and issuance of shares of stock or other beneficial interest in corporation

Whenever shares of stock or other beneficial interest in any corporation, association, or company or trust are vested in any officer or agency designated by the President under this subchapter, it shall be the duty of the corporation, association, or company or trustee or trustees issuing such shares or any certificates or other instruments representing the same or any other beneficial interest to cancel such shares of stock or other beneficial interest upon its, his, or their books and in lieu thereof to issue certificates or other instruments for such shares or other beneficial interest to the designee of the President, or otherwise as such designee shall require.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 203, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 563.)
§ 1631c. Filing of order of conveyance

Any vesting order, or other order or requirement issued pursuant to this subchapter, or a duly certified copy thereof, may be filed, registered, or recorded in any office for the filing, registering, or recording of conveyances, transfers, or assignments of such property as may be covered by such order or requirement; and if so filed, registered, or recorded shall impart the same notice and have the same force and effect as a duly executed conveyance, transfer, or assignment so filed, registered, or recorded.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 204, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 563.)
§ 1631d. Acquittance and discharge of obligation

Any payment, conveyance, transfer, assignment, or delivery of property made to the President or his designee pursuant to this subchapter, or any rule, regulation, instruction, or direction issued under this subchapter, shall to the extent thereof be a full acquittance and discharge for all purposes of the obligation of the person making the same; and no person shall be held liable in any court for or in respect of any such payment, conveyance, transfer, assignment, or delivery made in good faith in pursuance of and in reliance on the provisions of this subchapter, or of any rule, regulation, instruction, or direction issued thereunder.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 205, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 563.)
§ 1631e. Rules by district courts; appeals

The district courts of the United States are given jurisdiction to make and enter all such rules as to notice and otherwise, and all such orders and decrees, and to issue such process as may be necessary and proper in the premises to enforce the provisions of this subchapter, with a right of appeal from the final order or decree of such court as provided in chapter 83 of title 28.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 206, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 563; amended Pub. L. 100–352, § 6(g), June 27, 1988, 102 Stat. 664.)
§ 1631f. Claims to vested property
(a) Action for return of property; jurisdiction; complaint; custody of property until final determination
Any person who has not filed a notice of claim under subsection (b) of this section may institute a suit in equity for the return of any property, or the net proceeds thereof, vested in a designee of the President pursuant to section 1631a(a) of this title and held by such designee. Such suit, to which said designee shall be made a party defendant, shall be instituted in the District Court of the United States for the District of Columbia or in the district court of the United States for the district in which the claimant resides, or, if a corporation, where it has its principal place of business, by the filing of a complaint which alleges—
(1) that the claimant is a person other than Bulgaria, Hungary, or Rumania, or a national thereof as defined in Executive Order 8389 of April 10, 1940, as amended; and
(2) that the claimant was the owner of such property immediately prior to its vesting, or is the successor in interest of such owner by inheritance, devise, or bequest.
If the court finds in favor of the claimant, it shall order the payment, conveyance, transfer, assignment, or delivery to said claimant of such property, or the net proceeds thereof, held by said designee or the portion thereof to which the court shall determine said claimant is entitled. If suit shall be so instituted, then such property, or, if liquidated, the net proceeds thereof, shall be retained in the custody of said designee until any final judgment or decree which shall be entered in favor of the claimant shall be fully satisfied, or until final judgment or decree shall be entered against the claimant or suit otherwise terminated.
(b) Notice of claim; review of denial
Any person who has not instituted a suit under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section may file a notice of claim under oath for the return of any property, or the net proceeds thereof, vested in a designee of the President pursuant to section 1631a(a) of this title and held by such designee. Such notice of claim shall be filed with said designee and in such form and containing such particulars as said designee shall require. Said designee may return any property so claimed, or the net proceeds thereof, whenever he shall determine—
(1) that the claimant is a person other than Bulgaria, Hungary, or Rumania, or a national thereof as defined in Executive Order 8389 of
(2) that the claimant was the owner of such property immediately prior to its vesting, or is the successor in interest of such owner by inheritance, devise, or bequest.
Any person whose claim is finally denied in whole or in part by said designee may obtain review of such denial by filing a petition therefor in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Such petition for review must be filed within sixty days after the date of mailing of the final order of denial by said designee and a copy shall forthwith be transmitted to the said designee by the clerk of the court. Within forty-five days after receipt of such petition for review, or within such further time as the court may grant for good cause shown, said designee shall file an answer thereto, and shall file with the court the record of the proceedings with respect to such claim, as provided in section 2112 of title 28. The court may enter judgment affirming the order of the designee; or, upon finding that such order is not in accordance with law or that any material findings upon which such order is based are unsupported by substantial evidence, may enter judgment modifying or setting aside the order in whole or in part, and (1) directing a return of all or part of the property claimed, or (2) remanding the claim for further administrative proceedings thereon. If a notice of claim is filed under this subsection, the property which is the subject of such claim, or, if liquidated, the net proceeds thereof, shall be retained in the custody of said designee until any final order of said designee or any final judgment or decree which shall be entered in favor of the claimant shall be fully satisfied, or until a final order of said designee or a final judgment or decree shall be entered against the claimant, or the claim or suit otherwise terminated.
(c) Exclusiveness of relief
(d) Recovery for conservation, preservation or maintenance of property
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 207, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 564; amended Pub. L. 85–791, § 33, Aug. 28, 1958, 72 Stat. 951; Pub. L. 90–421, § 1(6), July 24, 1968, 82 Stat. 421.)
§ 1631g. Payment of debts
(a) Claims allowable; defensesAny property vested in the designee of the President pursuant to section 1631a(a) of this title, or the net proceeds thereof, shall be equitably applied by such designee in accordance with this section to the payment of debts owed by the person who owned such property immediately prior to its vesting in such designee. No debt claim shall be allowed under this section—
(1) if it is asserted against Bulgaria, Hungary, or Rumania (including the government or any political subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities thereof); or
(2) if it is based upon an obligation expressed or payable in any currency other than the currency of the United States; or
(3) if it was not due and owing—
(A) on October 9, 1940, in the event the property in respect of which such debt claim is filed was owned immediately prior to vesting by a national of Rumania;
(B) on March 4, 1941, in the event the property in respect of which such debt claim is filed was owned immediately prior to vesting by a national of Bulgaria; or
(C) on March 13, 1941, in the event that the property in respect of which such debt claim is filed was owned immediately prior to vesting by a national of Hungary.
Any defense to the payment of such claim which would have been available to the debtor shall be available to the designee, except that the period from and after December 7, 1941, shall not be included for the purpose of determining the applicability of any statute of limitations. Debt claims allowable under this section shall include only those of natural persons who were citizens of the United States at the dates their debtors became obligated to them; those of other natural persons who are and have been continuously since December 7, 1941, residents of the United States; those of corporations organized under the laws of the United States or any State, Territory, or possession thereof, or the District of Columbia; and those acquired by the designee of the President under this subchapter. Successors in interest by inheritance, devise, bequest, or operation of law of debt claimants, other than persons who would themselves be disqualified hereunder from allowance of a debt claim, shall be eligible for payment to the same extent as their principals or predecessors would have been.
(b) Time limit for filing claims; extension; notice
(c) Examination of claims; finality of determination
(d) Fund for debt payments
(e) Amount payable; disallowance; notice; review; additional evidence; judgment
(f) Schedule of debt claims allowed; notice; review; additional evidence; intervention; judgment
(g) Priority of claims
(h) Priority as debt due United States
(i) Exclusiveness of relief
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 208, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 565.)
§ 1631h. Hearings on claims; rules and regulations; delegation of powers

The officer or agency designated by the President under this subchapter to entertain claims under sections 1631f(b) and 1631g of this title shall have power to hold such hearings as may be deemed necessary; to prescribe rules and regulations governing the form and contents of claims, the proof thereof, and all other matters related to proceedings on such claims; and in connection with such proceedings to issue subpenas, administer oaths, and examine witnesses. Such powers, and any other powers conferred upon such officer or agency by sections 1631f(b) and 1631g of this title may be exercised through subordinate officers designated by such officer or agency.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 209, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 568.)
§ 1631i. Limitations

No suit may be instituted pursuant to section 1631f(a) of this title after the expiration of one year from the date of vesting of the property in respect of which relief is sought. No return may be made pursuant to section 1631f(b) of this title unless notice of claim has been filed within one year from the date of vesting of the property in respect of which the claim is filed.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 210, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 568.)
§ 1631j. Fees of agents, attorneys, or representatives

No property or proceeds shall be returned under this subchapter, nor shall any payment be made or judgment awarded in respect of any property vested in any officer or agency designated by the President under this subchapter unless satisfactory evidence is furnished to said designee, or the court, as the case may be, that the aggregate of the fees to be paid to all agents, attorneys at law or in fact, or representatives, for services rendered in connection with such return or payment or judgment does not exceed 10 per centum of the value of such property or proceeds or of such payment. Any agent, attorney at law or in fact, or representative, believing that the aggregate of the fees should be in excess of such 10 per centum may, in the case of any return of, or the making of any payment in respect of, such property or proceeds by the President or such officer or agency as he may designate, petition the district court of the United States for the district in which he resides for an order authorizing fees in excess of 10 per centum and shall name such officer or agency as respondent. The court hearing such petition or a court awarding any judgment in respect of any such property or proceeds, as the case may be, shall approve an aggregate of fees in excess of 10 per centum of the value of such property or proceeds only upon a finding that there exist special circumstances of unusual hardship which require the payment of such excess. Any person accepting any fee in excess of an amount approved under this section, or retaining for more than thirty days any portion of a fee, accepted prior to such approval, in excess of the fee as approved, shall be guilty of a violation of this subchapter.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 211, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 568.)
§ 1631k. Taxes
(a) Liability
(b) Payment by designee; liability of former owner; enforcement of tax liability; transfer of property
(c) Computation; suspension of limitations
(d) “Tax” defined
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 212, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 569.)
§ 1631l. Determination of expenses and time for filing suit, notice of claim and debt claim
Prior to covering the net proceeds of liquidation of any property into the Treasury pursuant to section 1631a(a) of this title, the designee of the President under this subchapter shall determine—
(1) the amount of his administrative expenses attributable to the performance of his functions under this subchapter with respect to such property and the proceeds thereof. The amount so determined, together with an amount not exceeding that expended or incurred for the conservation, preservation, or maintenance of such property and the proceeds thereof, and for taxes in respect of same, shall be deducted and retained by the designee from the proceeds otherwise covered into the Treasury; and
(2) that the time for the institution of a suit under section 1631f(a) of this title, for the filing of a notice of claim under section 1631f(b) of this title, and for the filing of debt claims under section 1631g of this title has elapsed.
The determinations of the designee under this section shall be final and conclusive.
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 213, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 570.)
§ 1631m. Lien, attachment, garnishment, etc., of transferred property

No property conveyed, transferred, assigned, delivered, or paid to the designee of the President under this subchapter, or the net proceeds thereof, shall be liable to lien, attachment, garnishment, trustee process, or execution, or subject to any order or decree of any court, except as provided in this subchapter.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 214, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 570.)
§ 1631n. Penalties

Whoever shall willfully violate any provision of this subchapter or any rule or regulation issued hereunder, and whoever shall willfully violate, neglect, or refuse to comply with any order of the President or of a designee of the President under this subchapter, issued in compliance with the provisions of this subchapter shall be fined not more than $5,000, or, if a natural person, imprisoned for not more than five years, or both; and the officer, director, or agent of any corporation who knowingly participates in such violation shall be punished by a like fine, imprisonment, or both.

(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 215, as added Aug. 9, 1955, ch. 645, § 3, 69 Stat. 570.)
§ 1631o. Eligibility for return of interest in property
(a) Persons eligible; determination; prerequisites
(b) Notice of claim; time of claim; fund for payment
(c) Finality of determination
(Mar. 10, 1950, ch. 54, title II, § 216, as added Pub. L. 90–421, § 1(7), July 24, 1968, 82 Stat. 421.)