Download This PaperA Debt of Dishonor
Boston University Law Review, Forthcoming
Virginia Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper No. 2022-36
32 Pages Posted: 3 May 2022 Last revised: 26 May 2022
Date Written: April 30, 2022
Abstract
In 1825, France conditioned its grant of recognition to the new nation of Haiti on the payment of 150 million francs plus trade benefits. The payments were, at least in part, compensation for the losses that French plantation owners suffered, a key part of which was the loss of enslaved Haitians, who took their freedom via revolution. France has officially apologized and acknowledged a “moral debt” that it owes the Haitian people. But is there a legal debt that Haiti, one of the poorest nations in the world, could claim today from France, one of the richest?
Keywords: Haiti, Odious Debt, 1825 Independence Debt, Sovereign Debt
JEL Classification: G15, H63, K34, O54
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Mark C. Weidemaier
University of North Carolina School of Law ( email )
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Mitu Gulati (Contact Author)
University of Virginia School of Law ( email )
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