Shearman & Sterling has filed suit in the Court of Appeals in Rome on behalf of the Libyan Investment Authority, challenging the seizure by Italian judicial authorities of approximately €1 billion in LIA assets held in Italy (comprising principally its equity stakes in Italian-listed companies UniCredit, Eni and Finmeccanica). This seizure was carried out pursuant to a request from the International Criminal Court in the Hague, which is asserting that the assets in question are the personal property of the Gaddafi family. The LIA is asserting that these assets are now controlled by the Government of Libya on behalf of the Libyan people.

The Libyan Investment Authority is a public agency of the Government of Libya that acts as a sovereign wealth fund, with a particular focus on making investments outside Libya. LIA is also the sole shareholder of various other Libyan sovereign wealth funds, including the Libyan Foreign Investment Company, the Libyan African Investment Portfolio, the Oil Investment Fund and the Economic and Social Development Fund.

The following Shearman & Sterling lawyers are representing LIA on this matter: Michael S. Bosco, Giovanni Bruno and Ludovica Ducci.