The Treaty of Peace (Finland) Order 1948

Made: 26th January 1948

Laid before Parliament: 28th January 1948

Coming into Operation: 2nd February 1948

At the Court at Buckingham Palace, the 26th day of January, 1948

Present,

The King's Most Excellent Majesty in Council

Whereas at Paris on the tenth day of February, nineteen hundred and forty-seven a Treaty of Peace with Finland (hereinafter referred to as “the Treaty” was signed on behalf of His Majesty:

And Whereas the Treaty contains amongst others the provisions set out in the First Schedule hereto:

And Whereas by Section 1 of the Treaties of Peace (Italy, Roumania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Finland) Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”) it was provided that His Majesty might make such appointments, establish such offices, make such Orders in Council and do such things as appear to Him to be necessary for carrying out the Treaty, and for giving effect to any provisions of the Treaty:

And Whereas the Treaty contained the provisions set out in the First Schedule to this Order, and it is expedient for giving effect to the aforesaid provisions of the Treaty that the provisions hereinafter contained should have effect:

And Whereas by Treaty, grant, usage, sufferance or other lawful means His Majesty has power and jurisdiction in the territories specified in the Second Schedule hereto which territories are in this Order together referred to as “Protected Territories”, and is pleased by virtue and in exercise of the power vested in Him by the Foreign Jurisdiction Act, 1890, or otherwise to extend the provisions of this Order to the Protected Territories.

Now, therefore, His Majesty, in pursuance of the said Section and of all other powers enabling Him in that behalf, is pleased, by and with the advice of His Privy Council, to order, and it is hereby ordered, as follows:—

1

So far as they are by their nature capable of so doing the provisions of the Treaty set out in the First Schedule hereto shall be and have effect as law.

2

The time at which the periods of prescription or limitation of right of action or of the right to take conservatory measures in respect of relations affecting persons or property referred to in paragraph 1 of Part B of Annex V of the Treaty shall begin again to run, shall be the date of the coming into force of the Treaty, subject, in the case of any period of limitation of right of action, to any provision of the Limitation (Enemies and War Prisoners) Act, 1945, fixing a later date.

3

The period to be allowed within which presentation of negotiable instruments for acceptance or payment and notice of non-acceptance or non-payment or protest may be made under paragraph 2 of Part C of Annex V of the Treaty shall be the period ending the 15th day of September, nineteen hundred and forty-eight.

4

The Comptroller-General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks shall have power to refuse any application for the grant of a patent for any invention relating to any article of the nature specified in Annex III of the Treaty, being an invention referred to in paragraph 6 of Annex IVA of the Treaty, or to revoke a patent for any such invention, provided that he shall not exercise that power adversely to an applicant or patentee without giving the applicant or patentee an opportunity of being heard, if the applicant or patentee so requires.

5

• (1) This Order shall apply to the whole of His Majesty's dominions and Protected Territories except the Dominions;

• (2) In its application to the parts of His Majesty's dominions, which are outside the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man and in its application to Protected Territories, this Order shall be subject to such modifications as may be made by the legislatures of those parts or those Protected Territories for adapting to the circumstances thereof the provisions of this Order.

6

• (1) For the purposes of the provisions of this Order—the expression “the Dominions” means a Dominion within the meaning of the Statute of Westminster, 1931, except Newfoundland, but including India, Pakistan and Ceylon and also including any territory administered by the Government of that Dominion;

• (2) The Interpretation Act, 1889, applies for the interpretation of this Order as it applies for the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.

7

This Order shall come into operation on the 2nd day of February, 1948.

8

This Order may be cited as the Treaty of Peace (Finland) Order, 1948.

THE FIRST SCHEDULE

PART V — ECONOMIC CLAUSES

Article 25

1

In so far as Finland has not already done so, Finland shall restore all legal rights and interests in Finland of the United Nations and their nationals as they existed on June 22nd, 1941, and shall return all property in Finland of the United Nations and their nationals as it now exists.

2

The Finnish Government undertakes that all property, rights and interests passing under this Article shall be restored free of all encumbrances and charges of any kind to which they may have become subject as a result of the war and without the imposition of any charges by the Finnish Government in connection with their return. The Finnish Government shall nullify all measures, including seizures, sequestration or control, taken by it against United Nations property between June 22nd, 1941, and the coming into force of the present Treaty. In cases where the property has not been returned within six months from the coming into force of the present Treaty, application shall be made to the Finnish authorities not later than twelve months from the coming into force of the Treaty, except in cases in which the claimant is able to show that he could not file his application within this period.

3

The Finnish Government shall invalidate transfers involving property, rights and interests of any description belonging to United Nations nationals, where such transfers resulted from force or duress exerted by Axis Governments or their agencies during the war.

4

• (a) The Finnish Government shall be responsible for the restoration to complete good order of the property returned to United Nations nationals under paragraph 1 of this Article. In cases where property cannot be returned or where, as a result of the war, a United Nations national has suffered a loss by reason of injury or damage to property in Finland, he shall receive from the Finnish Government compensation in Finnish marks to the extent of two-thirds of the sum necessary, at the date of payment, to purchase similar property or to make good the loss suffered. In no event shall United Nations nationals receive less favourable treatment with respect to compensation than that accorded to Finnish nationals.

• (b) United Nations nationals who hold, directly or indirectly, ownership interests in corporations or associations which are not United Nations nationals within the meaning of paragraph 8 (a) of this Article, but which have suffered a loss by reason of injury or damage to property in Finland, shall receive compensation in accordance with sub-paragraph (a) above. This compensation shall be calculated on the basis of the total loss or damage suffered by the corporation or association and shall bear the same proportion to such loss or damage as the beneficial interests of such nationals in the corporation or association bear to the total capital thereof.

• (c) Compensation shall be paid free of any levies, taxes or other charges. It shall be freely usable in Finland but shall be subject to the foreign exchange control regulations which may be in force in Finland from time to time.

• (d) The Finnish Government shall accord to United Nations nationals the same treatment in the allocation of materials for the repair or rehabilitation of their property in Finland and in the allocation of foreign exchange for the importation of such materials as applies to Finnish nationals.

• (e) The Finnish Government shall grant United Nations nationals an indemnity in Finnish marks at the same rate as provided in sub-paragraph (a) above to compensate them for the loss or damage due to special measures applied to their property during the war, and which were not applicable to Finnish property. This sub-paragraph does not apply to a loss of profit.

5

All reasonable expenses incurred in Finland in establishing claims, including the assessment of loss or damage, shall be borne by the Finnish Government.

6

United Nations nationals and their property shall be exempted from any exceptional taxes, levies or imposts imposed on their capital assets in Finland by the Finnish Government or any Finnish authority between the date of the Armistice and the coming into force of the present Treaty for the specific purpose of meeting charges arising out of the war or of meeting the costs of reparation payable to any of the United Nations. Any sums which have been so paid shall be refunded.

7

The owner of the property concerned and the Finnish Government may agree upon arrangements in lieu of the provisions of this Article.

8

As used in this Article:

• (a)

• “United Nations nationals” means individuals who are nationals of any of the United Nations, or corporations or associations organised under the laws of any of the United Nations, at the coming into force of the present Treaty, provided that the said individuals, corporations or associations also had this status at the date of the Armistice with Finland.

• The term “United Nations nationals” also includes all individuals, corporations or associations which, under the laws in force in Finland during the war, have been treated as enemy;

• (b) “Owner” means the United Nations national, as defined in sub-paragraph (a) above, who is entitled to the property in question, and includes a successor of the owner, provided that the successor is also a United Nations national as defined in sub-paragraph (a). If the successor has purchased the property in its damaged state, the transferor shall retain his rights to compensation under this Article, without prejudice to obligations between the transferor and the purchaser under domestic law;

• (c) “Property” means all movable or immovable property, whether tangible or intangible, including industrial, literary and artistic property, as well as all rights or interests of any kind in property.

Article 27

In so far as any such rights were restricted on account of Finland's participation in the war on Germany's side, the rights of the Finnish Government and of any Finnish nationals, including juridical persons, relating to Finnish property or other Finnish assets on the territories of the Allied and Associated Powers shall be restored after the coming into force of the present Treaty.

Article 29

Article 31

PART VI — FINAL CLAUSES

Article 34

Article 35

ANNEX IV — Special Provisions Relating to Certain Kinds of Property

ANNEX V — Contracts, Prescription and Negotiable Instruments

For the purposes of this Annex, natural or juridical persons shall be regarded as enemies from the date when trading between them shall have become unlawful under laws, orders or regulations to which such persons or the contracts were subject.

THE SECOND SCHEDULE

Signed

E. C. E. Leadbitter

Explanatory note

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Order in Council gives effect, as far as this is possible, to certain Articles of the Peace Treaty with Finland which came into force on September 15, 1947.