The case of the day is Maalouf v. Islamic Republic of Iran (D.D.C. 2018). The case arose out of the Beirut embassy bombings in the 1980s. Some plaintiffs brought claims against Iran in the early 2000s, and the courts held that Iran was not immune from suit in light of the terrorism exception to foreign sovereign immunity. Then Maalouf sued. While the earlier suits were timely under the statute of limitations the FSIA prescribes in such cases, Maalouf’s suit was plainly untimely. Iran did not appear in the case, and the question was whether the court should grant Maalouf’s motion for default judgment notwithstanding the evident limitations defense that Iran could have (would have?) asserted if it appeared.