Missouri has asked a federal judge to reject efforts by Chinese government-linked defendants to overturn a $24.5 billion judgment over alleged economic harm caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, arguing that they waited far too long to contest the case.
In a court filing, the US state said Hubei province and two other defendants had stayed away from earlier proceedings and only challenged the judgment more than a year after it was issued. Missouri maintains that the defendants cannot now demand a fresh examination of claims that the court has already accepted.
The state filed its lawsuit in April 2020, seeking compensation for economic losses it attributed to actions by Chinese authorities during the coronavirus outbreak. Hubei, where the outbreak first emerged in late 2019, was among the entities named in the case.
The litigation took a significant turn in 2024, when a federal appeals court revived part of the lawsuit after a lower court had dismissed it. The surviving claim alleges that the defendants monopolised supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE), contributing to higher prices and financial losses.
In March 2025, US District Judge Stephen Limbaugh Jr. issued a default judgment after the defendants failed to appear or respond to the proceedings. The court’s initial assessment put compensatory damages at $8 billion, an amount that rose to approximately $24.5 billion after being trebled under federal law.
In August, Hubei province and the Chinese Academy of Sciences asked the judge to set aside the ruling and dismiss the lawsuit. They argued that the court lacked jurisdiction over them and that allowing the judgment to stand would improperly interfere with China’s sovereign authority and foreign affairs.
Missouri has rejected those arguments, maintaining that its lawsuit does not infringe upon China’s sovereign powers. Its latest filing focuses on the defendants’ prolonged absence from the proceedings, portraying their challenge as an attempt to reopen a case they chose not to contest earlier.
Representatives of the Chinese embassy in the United States, lawyers representing Hubei, and Missouri’s attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
China and Missouri Face a Separate Legal Battle
The dispute has also triggered litigation in China. Hubei province and other plaintiffs have filed a separate case against Missouri and several state officials, accusing them of damaging their reputations through the American lawsuit.
Filed in April 2025, the Chinese case seeks public apologies in both US and Chinese media, along with nearly $53 billion in damages. The plaintiffs have characterised Missouri’s pandemic-related lawsuit as a vexatious action targeting China over the spread of COVID-19 and the conduct of the Chinese state.
The competing cases leave both sides pursuing substantial financial claims in their respective legal systems, with Missouri continuing to defend the US judgment and Chinese entities seeking to have it overturned.
