On Wednesday, 10 September 2025, US authorities are closing the sealed bid auction of a $300 million yacht. While the sale could be a steal, legal experts are warning any potential buyers of the risk involved in the transaction.
The 106-meter-long Amadea, as the yacht is called, was seized by the US in 2022, as authorities believed that the ship belonged to the sanctioned Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov. It was thus forfeited by order of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York; However, while Kerimov has been denying his ownership ever since, the unsanctioned Russian businessman Eduard Khudainatov has been insisting on being the Amadea’s owner.
While Khudainatov has filed several lawsuits through his lawyer, Mr Ford of the law firm Ford O’Brien Landy, the US has nevertheless decided to sell the ship docked in San Diego, California. With its eight cabins, helipad, and cinema lounge, the upkeep is estimated to cost the US nearly $1 million per month, according to The New York Times and a sale is therefore seen as essential.
Floating lawsuit
Although it is thought that the ship will be sold for a fraction of its initial price, law experts have been warning of the potential risks involved in the auction. Paul Stephan, a law professor at the University of Virginia, has already branded the boat a ‘floating lawsuit’. According to him, some entrepreneurs with an appetite for risk might gamble on the Amadea, but they might regret their purchase as soon as the yacht leaves the US.
Indeed, while the US court has so far denied the fact that Eduard Khudainatov is the owner of the Amadea, foreign courts might judge otherwise.
“A creative lawyer could come up with arguments that might succeed even in a strong rule-of-law jurisdiction such as the UK: (1) Does US civil forfeiture procedure satisfy standards of fair process? (2) Did the US court deny the nominal owner his day in court? (3) Are the US sanctions against public policy? Countries that are not inclined to accept the US sanctioning regime and have less independent courts might be even more inclined to reject the US judgment. Good luck sailing into Hong Kong or Macao, for example. In each instance, it would add risk to the transaction and at least make it more expensive, if not unattainable”, Stephan explained.
The law professor’s reasoning seems to be confirmed by Eduard Khudainatov’s lawyer, who has been trying to appeal the forfeiture.
“The sale is improper and premature; we retain title and are actively appealing the forfeiture ruling. If our appeal succeeds, the government must repay the vessel’s full value. We doubt it will attract any rational buyer at fair market price, because ownership can, and will, be challenged in courts outside the United States, exposing purchasers to years of costly, uncertain litigation. Recent judgments in European and Caribbean courts have already penalised buyers who acquired assets through illegitimate seizures, including Russian-owned superyachts. Prospective bidders should study those precedents carefully”, Mr Ford of the law firm Ford O’Brien Landy said about the auction.
The Amadea is being sold via a closed bid auction, closing on 10 September 2025. A $10 million initial bid deposit is required from each bidder, although there is no fee to place a bid. All bid deposits will be held in escrow until the auction closes at 2:00 pm ET on 10 September 2025.
