Post-War Restoration of Property Rights under International Law

Several international mass claims programmes have recently been established to process individual claims arising from armed conflicts. These entities possess specific institutional and structural features allowing for an effective and efficient resolution of claims. Moreover, violation of international law protecting property during war gives rise to inter-State and individual reparation, mostly partial, for which monetary compensation is more frequent than return of property. These programmes have also developed specific procedures to handle the administration of evidence and new techniques to decide all of the claims within a reasonable period of time. This 2-volume set reviews modern-day mass claims practice. Volume I shows how new mass claims programmes have built upon traditional dispute resolution mechanisms, and also examines the substantive law rules protecting property rights. Volume II focuses on the administration of evidence and the techniques developed to decide mass claims, including the use of statistical sampling.

Hans van Houtte is Professor of Law at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium and president of the Eritrea Ethiopia Claims Commission in The Hague. In the past he has served as a member of the Commission for Real Property Claims in Bosnia Herzegovina, a member of United Nations Compensation Commission, and an arbitrator and senior judge at the Claims Resolution Tribunal for Dormant Accounts.

Hans Das is Deputy Head of Unit at the Directorate-General for Environment (DG Environment), European Commission.

Formerly a research assistant at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium, Bart Delmartino is Public Affairs Manager at Fortis.

Iasson Yi is an academic assistant in private international law at the law faculty of Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium.