HR6261-119

What This Bill Does

The Fairness for 9/11 Families Technical Fix Act amends the Justice for United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Act to create an exception for Havlish Settling Judgment Creditors. Those creditors are plaintiffs, estates, or successors with eligible claims arising from the September 11, 2001 attacks who were identified as settling judgment creditors in the April 16, 2014 order in In re 650 Fifth Avenue and Related Properties. The bill says the relevant limitation does not apply to those creditors, to assets or sale proceeds attributable to them, or to creditors who previously elected to participate in the Fund or applied for conditional payment. It releases allocated funds that had been withheld from distribution, lets those creditors participate in future payment rounds like other covered claimants, and makes the fix effective as if enacted on December 29, 2022.

Who Benefits and How

Havlish Settling Judgment Creditors, their estates, and successors benefit from release of withheld funds and restored eligibility for future United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund payment rounds. September 11 victim families connected to the Havlish settlement benefit from a technical fix to prior conditional-payment treatment. Fund administrators benefit from clearer statutory treatment of this claimant class.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund must release previously withheld allocations, update future payment-round eligibility, and apply the change retroactively to December 29, 2022. Other claimants may face allocation effects if Fund resources are distributed to Havlish creditors. Administrators must map the statutory definition to the 2014 Southern District of New York order.

Key Provisions

• Adds an exception for Havlish Settling Judgment Creditors in the terrorism-victim fund statute.
• Requires release and payment of funds previously allocated to Havlish creditors but withheld from distribution.
• Authorizes Havlish creditors to participate in future payment rounds like other covered claimants.
• Defines Havlish Settling Judgment Creditor by reference to September 11 claims and the April 16, 2014 In re 650 Fifth Avenue order.
• Applies the amendments retroactively as if enacted on December 29, 2022.