The Case of the Venezuelan Gold in London. Comments on the British Courts Rulings / El Caso del Oro Venezolano en Londres. Comentarios a las sentencias de las Cortes Británicas, 2020-2023,

This book of Professor Allan R. Brewer-Carías, is referred to the so-called Case of the Venezuelan Gold in London, which was a judicial process that took place between 2019 and 2023 before the courts of the United Kingdom, to determine who, among two Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV), was the one that had control of the international gold reserves of the Republic of Venezuela deposited in the Bank of England and another financial institution: one of the Board was appointed by Nicolás Maduro, as President of Venezuela, a condition that was not recognized by the Government of the United Kingdom, and the other Board was appointed according to the 2019 Transition to Democracy Statute of 2019, by the President of the National Assembly as Interim President of the Republic, a condition that was recognized by the Government of the United Kingdom. Without a doubt, it was the most important judicial case, in terms of amount, in which the Venezuelan State has been involved in its entire history, in which three important judicial rulings were issued by the British Courts, referred to fundamental issues of private international law and of constitutional law: first, the ruling of December 20, 2021 issued by the British Supreme Court, resolving on the matters of the recognition of a foreign Head of State and the doctrine of the “act of State”; second, the ruling of July 29, 2022 issued by the High Court of Justice. Business and Property Courts of England and Wales. Commercial Court (QBD), referred to the equally fundamental issue of the recognition of judgments from foreign courts in UK courts, in this case of certain judgments of the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice of Venezuela issued in 2019 and 2020; and third, the ruling of July 30, 2023 of the Court of Appeals (Civil Division)., which fully confirmed the aforementioned judgement of the High Court of Justices The practical result of the case, has been that the Venezuelan Gold deposited in the Bank of England, which are international reserve of the country, have remained wholly deposited in its vaults as such valuable international reserve of the country, due to the fact that none of the Boards that were litigating the case had the possibility of using or disposing of it