IOR/L/PS/12/2856

This file is a continuation of IOR/L/PS/12/2855. It contains papers regarding legal cases brought against the heirs of Shaikh Mubārak Āl Ṣabāḥ (the Shaikh of Kuwait) by Abdullah bin Issa Pasha Al Zuhair, concerning the ownership of the date garden properties known as the Faddaghiyeh, the Bashiyeh and the Fao.

The file primarily consists of correspondence between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, the Foreign Office, the India Office Political Department, the Treasury, the Political Agent at Kuwait, and HM Ambassador to Iraq. It also contains letters received from the Shaikh of Kuwait (Shaikh Aḥmad al-Jābir Āl Ṣabāḥ), the Shaikh's son and acting representative in Basra (Shaikh Muḥammad Āl Ṣabāḥ), and the Shaikh's lawyers, Ahmed Rushidi Bey [Aḥmad Rashīdī Bey] and Abdul Jalil Partu, as well as copies of outgoing letters to them.

The papers cover the period 1937-1943, and the following topics: the service of summons on the Shaikh of Kuwait by the Basra Courts; the provision of legal assistance to the Shaikh; the identity of the various heirs to the estate of Shaikh Mubarak Al Sabah; cases found for and against the Shaikh of Kuwait; appeals lodged at the Basra Courts on behalf of the Shaikh of Kuwait; and arrangements to compensate the Shaikh of Kuwait and the Shaikh of Mohammerah for losses sustained via indirect taxation on the date garden properties.

The file also concerns attempts by HMG to have the Faddaghiyah cases referred to a Land Settlement procedure, in a bid to halt any lawsuits and finally determine the ownership of the gardens.

The file also contains the following reports and legal documents (English translations unless otherwise stated):

• Petition filed by Abdulla bin Issa Pasha Al-Zuhair, before the Basra Court of Instance against the heirs of Shaikh Mubarak Al-Sabah, ff 484-489.
• Statement of pleading submitted by Ahmed Rushidi and Abdul Jalil Partu on behalf of the heirs of Mubarak Al Sabah to the Basra Court of Instance, ff 433-440.
• Statement of the Defence in reply to the Plaintiff's memorandum, arguing that the case falls outside the jurisdiction of the Court, ff 394-404.
• Note submitted by the Defence to the President of the Court of First Instance, Basra, ff 363-393.
• Additional memorandum prepared by Ahmed Rushidi Bey and Abdul Jalil Partu, submitted to the court of First Instance, ff 337-348.
• English and Arabic versions of the third defence memorandum submitted to the Court of First Instance, ff 288-311.
• Copy of a judgement from the Court of Cassation, in its capacity as Court of Appeal, regarding disposal of cases to Land Settlement (October 1936) ff 256-258.
• Copy Judgement of the Basra Court of Instance in suit No. 373/1932, ff 260-265.
• Note on a conversation with Saiyid Yusuf al Kabir on the Faddaghiyah case; with copy of the surety statement, ff 219-224.
• English and Arabic documents regarding a dispute over the wording (in Arabic) of a legal document, ff 180-192.
• Second Statement of Appeal in Case No. 373/932 submitted by Partu to the Court of First Instance, Basra, ff 140-154.
• Notices announcing the commencement of Land Settlement proceedings, published in Al Waqa'i Al-Iraqiyya, ff 91-93.
• Judgement of the Court of Cassation, referring the case to the Land Settlement Committee, dated 19 Rabi' al Thani 1358 [7 June 1939], ff 98-99.
• Final decision of the Second Court for Land Settlement, Baghdad, File Nos. 224, 225, 226, 227, 228 and 229/1941, ff 11-12.

The file continues with Collection 17/8 part 5, reference IOR/L/PS/12/2857.

The file includes dividers which give lists of correspondence references contained in the file by year. These are placed at the end of the correspondence (folios 2-4).