Immunities

Since readers have no doubt tired of the law of war by now, I would like to change topics and address some of the immunity issues that confront L on a regular basis. Most of you are familiar with the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), 28 U.S.C. 1330, 1602 et seq., which codified the restrictive theory of the immunity of states and established procedures for bringing suits and enforcing judgments against foreign states (including their political subdivisions and agencies and instrumentalities). A principal purpose of the FSIA was to provide courts with the tools to determine when immunity would apply in suits against foreign states, obviating the need for the Executive Branch to file suggestions of immunity on behalf of foreign states. But L, in conjunction with the Department of Justice, continues to play an important role in providing guidance to our courts on the various immunity issues they confront.

The immunity of foreign government officials is one example. The FSIA does not by its express terms address the immunity of such officials. Several Executive Branch officials who worked on the formulation of the FSIA wrote that it did not deal with such officials when they published a review of pre-FSIA sovereign immunity decisions in the Department of State’s 1977 Digest of international practice. And, the House Report on the FSIA stated that it would have no effect on diplomatic or consular immunity. Nevertheless, in Chuidian v. Philippine National Bank, 912 F.2d 1095 (1990), the Ninth Circuit concluded that the FSIA should apply to foreign government officials as “agencies,” so as to prevent an “end run” around state immunity. In that case, this approach produced the same result — immunity — advocated by the Executive Branch, but on a theory — applicability of the FSIA — that the Executive Branch did not advance. The point is not academic, because the FSIA treats “agencies” differently than other components of a state and would not, for example, accord immunity to officials for commercial activities undertaken while merely carrying out normal governmental functions. Since 1990, some other circuits have adopted the Chuidian reading of the FSIA, such as the D.C. Circuit in El-Fadl v. Cent. Bank of Jordan, 75 F.3d 668 (1996) and the 6th Circuit in Keller v. Cent. Bank of Nigeria, 277 F.3d 811 (2002). Just this past November, at the request of Judge Pauley of the Southern District of New York, the Executive Branch reiterated the position it advanced in Chuidian – that the immunities of foreign government officials generally derive from federal common law as informed by international custom, rather than the FSIA, in a Statement of Interest filed in Matar v. Dichter, S.D.N.Y. 05 Civ. 10270 (WHP). This approach avoids some of the obvious problems of the Chuidian approach and is more consistent with the position taken by the United States on behalf of its own officials when they are sued abroad.

In addition, certain categories of foreign officials are accorded immunity by more specific legal regimes. Diplomatic and consular officers enjoy immunities under the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and on Consular Relations, respectively, bilateral treaties with certain countries, and in some instances customary international law. These sources reflect some of the oldest principles of international law, which recognize the importance of facilitating a sovereign state’s unimpeded representation within each other’s jurisdictions. The Executive Branch does not necessarily play a role in cases involving the immunities of such officers, because we expect the states or officers involved to retain private counsel for the officers’ representation. The State Department does, however, certify the status of diplomatic and consular officers and may work with the Department of Justice to file a statement of interest addressing issues in a case. For example, we have filed to address whether a particular type of action by a consular officer should be regarded as performance of a consular function falling within the scope of a consular officer’s immunity for official acts. We also, when necessary, advise arresting officers and prosecutors of the applicable criminal immunities of diplomatic and consular officers. This advisory practice significantly reduces the need for criminal immunity issues to be litigated in court.

Another basis for foreign government officials’ immunity that is independent of the FSIA is the doctrine of head-of-state immunity. When applicable, it entails full personal immunity from the jurisdiction of U.S. courts. The Executive Branch has a longstanding practice of affirmatively “suggesting” head-of-state immunity to our courts when a person who enjoys the immunity has been served with judicial process. The practice dates at least to the mid-1960s, when such suggestions were made with respect to the South Korean Foreign Minister (1963) and King Faisal of Saudi Arabia (1965). Since then, we have suggested head-of-state immunity in some thirty cases which have dealt with heads of state, heads of government, the spouse of a head of state, and foreign ministers. The doctrine of head-of-state immunity recognizes the unique role played by government leaders and the special sensitivities of exposing them to civil litigation in foreign courts, particularly while they are still in office.

Another immunity that may be accorded to foreign officials is special mission immunity, which is also grounded in customary international law and federal common law (Like most countries, the United States has not joined the Special Missions Convention.). The doctrine of special mission immunity, like diplomatic immunity, is necessary to facilitate high level contacts between governments through invitational visits. The Executive Branch has made suggestions of special mission immunity in cases such as one filed against Prince Charles in 1978 while he was here on an official visit. Kilroy v. Charles Windsor, Prince of Wales, Civ. No. C-78-291 (N.D. Ohio, 1978). This past summer, in response to a request for views by the federal district court for the D.C. Circuit, the Executive Branch submitted a suggestion of special mission immunity on behalf of a Chinese Minister of Commerce who was served while attending bilateral trade talks hosted by the United States, in Li Weixum v. Bo Xilai, D.C.C.Civ. No. 04-0649 (RJL).

Our suggestions of immunity normally respond to requests from a foreign government made after its official has been served with a complaint in a civil action. We usually ask that the request be conveyed through a diplomatic note, with all relevant information and documents, including of course the summons and complaint. If we agree that a suggestion of immunity should be filed, the Justice Department submits one to the court on behalf of the Executive Branch. These filings are typically very short because, once we have determined that an official enjoys immunity, we expect the court to defer to that decision, in accordance with well-established judicial doctrines tracing back to The Schooner Exchange v. McFaddon, 11 U.S. (7 Cranch) 116 (1812).

Our immunity practice also encompasses international organizations (IOs). Here the governing standard is usually the International Organizations Immunities Act (IOIA) rather than the FSIA. If IOs are sued in our courts we normally expect them, like foreign governments, to appear in court to assert their own immunity. The United Nations is an exception, however. Under Section 2 of the UN Convention on Privileges and Immunities, the UN has complete immunity from suit in the US, including “from every form of legal process.” Officials of IOs generally have official acts immunity, but a small number of officials of the UN and the Organization of American States have full diplomatic immunity pursuant to our headquarters agreements with them.

Finally, back to the FSIA. While it ended the Department of State’s practice of suggesting immunity on behalf of sovereign states, it by no means ended the Department’s participation in litigation against foreign states. Along with the Department of Justice, L works to ensure that the FSIA is interpreted and applied properly, bearing in mind its purpose and the reciprocity and foreign policy issues that could arise from the decisions of our courts. We do not keep track of all of the many cases in our courts that involve FSIA issues, but we participate as amicus when our views are requested by the courts and occasionally on our own initiative or in response to a request by parties to the litigation. Most recently, for example, in response to a Supreme Court request for views with respect to two petitions for certiorari (Nos. 05-85 and 05-584), the Executive Branch argued that the Court should address two 9th Circuit decisions involving whether a Canadian entity — Powerex Corporation — is an “organ” of British Columbia and, therefore, an “agency or instrumentality” of a foreign state under the FSIA.

The sovereign and official immunity rules the United States applies domestically have important implications for how the United States and its officials are treated abroad. Thus immunity outcomes in our courts are relevant not merely because of the potential immediate foreign policy consequences of U.S. exercises of jurisdiction. In cases in which immunity precludes litigation, whether in the United States against foreign states and their officials or abroad against the United States and its officials, we may also — in appropriate cases — look for other ways to help resolve the underlying dispute. In addressing immunity questions we carry out research and analysis of treaties and international practice with the goal of establishing principles that will benefit all countries. Recent developments that we have followed with particular interest have included the February 2002 decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the “Arrest Warrant” or “Yerodia” case (Democratic Republic of The Congo v. Belgium),
in which the ICJ ordered Belgium to cancel a warrant for the arrest of the DRC’s Foreign Minister after concluding that the Foreign Minister enjoyed absolute criminal immunity and inviolability under international law when abroad. Another case we have examined is the U.K. House of Lords’ decision in the civil action Jones v. Ministry of Interior (of Saudi Arabia), in which their Lordships discussed The Arrest Warrant Case at considerable length as part of a comprehensive examination of the immunity of foreign government officials generally.

As you can see, we have a robust litigation practice involving the immunities of foreign states and international organizations and their respective officials. It is a rich and intellectually rewarding area of work, and I welcome your comments on it.