UK Supreme Court acceptance of Iran’s Crescent appeal offers legal lifeline

The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom has formally accepted the appeal filed by the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) in the long-running gas case of the Crescent Gas Corporation Limited, opening a potential legal avenue to prevent the seizure of the valuable London-based Oil Industry Pension Fund building.

News ID: 2002318

According to the official UK Supreme Court registry, the case has been logged under reference UKSC/2025/0190 as an “appeal as of right,” a legal mechanism allowing certain appeals to be reviewed by the Supreme Court without a separate permission process.

This development comes after the UK Court of Appeal previously ruled in favor of the UAE-based Crescent company, reinforcing the risk of executing a property seizure in London’s Victoria Street.

Crescent alleges that NIOC transferred the so-called NIOC House to the pension fund to shield assets following an international arbitration ruling in Crescent’s favor.

Last year, a London lower court deemed this transfer a transaction undervalued to avoid creditor claims under bankruptcy law, a decision upheld by the Court of Appeal. A dissent among the three appellate judges paved the way for Supreme Court review.

By accepting the appeal, the Supreme Court will re-examine both the arguments and prior rulings, with any action on the London property now contingent on its final decision. Legal analysts note that Supreme Court proceedings are often lengthy, but the court remains the only authority in the UK capable of overturning lower court verdicts in cases with broad legal and public significance.

Meanwhile, over 15,000 oil industry employees and retirees have signed a petition urging recognition of the fund’s ownership, emphasizing that the building’s proceeds support pensions, life insurance, and healthcare for more than 200,000 workers./irna