Oscar Chinn Case


The Oscar Chinn Case. , P.C.I.J. No. 63
was a case of the Permanent Court of International Justice.
The Belgian government granted significant subsidies to a Belgian company, UNATRA, that offered transportation services in the Belgian Congo. Mr. Chinn, a British subject who operated a fluvial transport company on the Congo River could not compete with the subsidised UNATRA's nominal prices and Britain brought a claim against the Belgian government as a matter of diplomatic protection.
The Court decided, based on the Convention of Saint-Germain 1919 and general principles of international law, that the Belgian Government did not violate any international legal obligations to the United Kingdom.