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US Supreme Court to address "agency" in commercial activity exception to sovereign immunity under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act
The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, 28 U.S.C. §§ 1602 et seq. ("FSIA") provides for limited statutory exceptions to the sovereign immunity of foreign …
French Supreme Court decision in Commisimpex dispute heralds significant change in approach to sovereign immunity
In Cour de cassation, Chambre civile 1, 13 May 2015, n° 13-17751, the French Cour de cassation (Supreme Court) considered an appeal from a Versailles …
English Court of Appeal confirms that the estate of a head of state who dies in office enjoys immunity only in respect of official acts
In the recent decision of Harb v HRH Prince Abdul Aziz Bin Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz [2015] EWCA Civ 481, the English Court of Appeal (the Court) confirmed …
The need to act strategically to preserve state immunity: States lose immunity by taking steps in proceedings in the English courts to challenge a Tribunal's jurisdiction
In an appeal in a case considering the interrelation between arbitration and state immunity, on an application by France and Spain (the States), the …
The erosion of state and diplomatic immunity by European law? Two recent English Court of Appeal cases
In the case of (1) Benkharbouche and (2) Janah v (1) Embassy of the Republic of Sudan and (2) Libya, the English Court of Appeal (the Court) considered …
English High Court provides guidance on waiver of sovereign immunity
In a recent decision in the case High Commissioner for Pakistan In the United Kingdom ("Pakistan") v National Westminster Bank (the "Bank"), the English …
Belhaj v Straw: English Court of Appeal rules that state immunity and the act of state doctrine does not prevent claims against the British government for alleged involvement in unlawful rendition
On 30 October 2014, the Court of Appeal in Belhaj v Straw and Others [2014] EWCA Civ 1394 ruled that state immunity and the act of state doctrine did not …
Constitutional rights vs. state immunity: implementation of an ICJ decision on sovereign immunity declared unconstitutional
A recent decision by the Italian Constitutional Court calls into question the applicability of generally accepted principles of sovereign immunity to …
ECHR reaffirms State immunity from civil proceedings for acts of torture in Jones v United Kingdom
In the recent case of Jones and others v United Kingdom, the European Court of Human Rights (the Court) found that the United Kingdom had not breached …
Recent Developments in India-related international arbitration
Herbert Smith Freehills has issued its latest Indian International Arbitration e-bulletin. The e-bulletin considers two decisions of the Delhi High Court …
UK Court of Appeal considers the immunity from suit of the family of a head of state
The Court of Appeal has examined the extent to which foreign heads of state and their families can claim immunity under the State Immunity Act 1978 (the …
NML Capital and Argentina: Ghanaian court rejects Argentina's sovereign immunity challenge and NML Capital targets second vessel in South Africa
On 25 October, News agencies reported that a second Argentine navy vessel has been targeted by NML Capital, this time in South Africa. This followed the …
Showing 36 out of 41 results
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