CK • Washington.   Im Revisionsbeschluss David De Csepel v. Republic of Hun­ga­ry vom 20. Juni 2017 finden sich zahlreiche wertvolle Erörterungen un­ter­schiedlicher Merkmale der Ausnahmen von der Staatenimmunität, doch be­han­delt er auch das neue Kunstherausgabegesetz, Holocaust Expropriated Art Re­co­ve­ry Act of 2016. Der Fall betrifft Enteignungen im Nazi-besetzten Ungarn, und Ungarn wehrt sich gegen die Herausgabeklage vor dem US-Gericht. Das Bun­des­berufungsgericht des Hauptstadtbezirks räumte dem Kläger das Recht auf eine späte Klageänderung nach diesem Gesetz ein, das Klägern eine Son­der­ver­jährungsfrist von sechs Jahren gewährt:

Finally, the Herzog family asks that should we dismiss any of their claims, they be allowed to amend their complaint in light of the Ho­lo­caust Expropriated Art Recovery Act of 2016. Pub. L. 114–308, 130 Stat. 1524. Passed during the pendency of this appeal, that statute rests on Congress's finding that "[v]ictims of Nazi persecution and their heirs have taken legal action in the United States to recover Na­zi-con­fiscated art," but "[t]hese lawsuits face significant procedural ob­stac­les partly due to State statutes of limitations." Id. § 2(6). The Act the­re­fo­re preempts existing state and federal statutes of limitations for "a civil claim or cause of action … to recover any artwork or other property that was lost … because of Nazi persecution." Id. § 5(a). Plaintiffs whose claims were barred by a statute of limitations now have six years from the enactment of the new statute to file their claims. Id. §5(c). Moreover, and crucially for the Herzog family, the Act's new statute of limitations applies to claims "pending in any court on the date of enactment of this Act, including any civil claim or cause of action that is pending on appeal." Id. § 5(d)(1).
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15 directs courts to "freely give leave [to amend] when justice so requires." Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a)(2). Given that Congress enacted the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act for the very purpose of permitting claims like these to continue de­spi­te existing statutes of limitations, "justice" quite obviously re­qui­res that the family be given leave to amend their complaint.