Law Commons^™

A Right Without A Remedy: How One Cincinnatian's Story Illustrates Terrorism Victims' Inability To Obtain Compensation Under The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, Christopher T. Colloton

University of Cincinnati Law Review

No abstract provided.

Decreasing Ambiguity For Public Administrators Implementing The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act Of 1976, Barbara Ahmed

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract The U.S. Congress created and adopted the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) to address foreign diplomatic immunity matters. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to analyze the policy implications of implementing FISA by public administrators. Mettler and SoRelle’s policy feedback theory provided the theoretical foundation for this study. The area of interest for this study was the 50 U.S. states with a focus on two metropolitan areas that include a large diplomatic contingent. Data collected were 180 legal cases brought against foreign diplomats from 2016-2021. In addition, legal cases were retrieved from a legal database and analyzed …

Nazi Stolen Art: Uses And Misuses Of The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, Vivian Grosswald Curran

Articles

U.S. courts in Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (“FSIA”) cases must interpret a comprehensive statute which has been said to stand or fall on its terms. At the same time, in Nazi-looted art cases, they do not ignore entirely the backdrop of the U.S.’ adoption of international principles and declarations promising to ensure the return of such art. To some extent, such an undertaking has been incorporated into a statutory amendment of the FSIA. The years 2021 and 2022 have seen major developments in the FSIA both at the U.S. Supreme Court and in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in …

Appraising The U.S. Supreme Court’S Philipp Decision, Vivian Grosswald Curran

Articles

This article assesses the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) after the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Germany v. Philipp. Philipp’s rejection of a genocide exception for a foreign state’s act of property expropriation comports with the absence of such an exception in the FSIA’s text. The article also suggests that the genocide exception as it had been developing was a detrimental development in FSIA interpretation, and was also harmful to international human rights law, inasmuch as it distorted the concept of genocide. The Philipp Court’s renewed focus on the international law of property, rather than of human rights, should …

Slaying The Leviathan: How Inconsistent Restrictions On State Immunity Undermine The Rule Of Law, Bailey Roe

American University International Law Review

No abstract provided.

If The Shoe Fits: Rethinking Minimum Contacts And The Fsia Commercial Activity Exception, Jacqueline M. Fitch

Washington and Lee Law Review Online

The question explored in this Note is whether, under the direct effect clause of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act commercial activities exception, a foreign sovereign must have minimum contacts with the United States in order for a U.S. court to assert personal jurisdiction over the entity. Examining personal jurisdiction over foreign states under the direct effect clause requires exploring the interaction between constitutional law and principles of international law. The minimum contacts analysis highlights the tension between applying constitutional due process protection to a foreign state, while simultaneously asserting jurisdiction over its commercial activities. Denying jurisdiction over a foreign sovereign …

The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act's Evolving Genocide Exception, Vivian Grosswald Curran

Articles

The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) was passed by Congress as a comprehensive statute to cover all instances when foreign states are to be immune from suit in the courts of the United States, as well as when foreign state immunity is to be limited. Judicial interpretation of one of the FSIA’s exceptions to immunity has undergone significant evolution over the years with respect to foreign state property expropriations committed in violation of international law. U.S. courts initially construed this FSIA exception by denying immunity only if the defendant state had expropriated property of a citizen of a nation other …

"Mob-Legislating": Jasta's Addition To The Terrorism Exception To Foreign Sovereign Immunity, Rachael E. Hancock

Cornell Law Review

This Note explores the issues with the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act that JASTA attempts to address, the likelihood of JASTA’s success, and whether or not JASTA is a desirable solution. Though the relatively recent nature of this addition renders the long-term impact difficult to assess, an examination of foreign sovereign immunity doctrine’s origins, evolution, and purpose provides sufficient information to make predictions about potential problems with JASTA. Part I briefly tracks the history of foreign sovereign immunity in the United States and the transition from an absolutist approach to a restricted approach. Part I also discusses the codification of the …

Justice Against Sponsors Of Terrorism: Why Suing Terrorists May Not Be The Most Effective Way To Advance United States Foreign Policy Objectives, Drew Watkins

Kentucky Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Over ©S: Dilemmas In Establishing Jurisdiction Over Foreign Sovereigns In Us Courts For Intellectual Property Infringement, Katherine Dutcher

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

When a foreign state infringes a US-held intellectual property right abroad, it is unclear to what extent the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 (FSIA) bars suit in US courts. The FSIA's already complex commercial activity exception, which governs such actions, was further obfuscated by the Supreme Court's decision in Republic of Argentina v. Weltover, which held that "substantiality" and "foreseeability" could not be used to determine whether a foreign sovereign's conduct had a "direct effect" in the United States, thus warranting jurisdiction in a US court. In the context of IP infringement, where harms may be abstract and unquantifiable, …

A Herculean Task For Judge Hercules: Analytical Avoidance In Iran V. Elahi, Anneliese Gryta

Akron Law Review

This Comment examines the history, development, and application of the FSIA’s terrorist state attachment exception through the lens of Iran v. Elahi, as well as the larger problems and ramifications which ripple forth from the case. Part II, Sections A, B, and C present the background of the FSIA, the terrorist state exception, explaining the difference between 1610(a)(7) attachment of a foreign state’s property and 1610(b)(2) attachment of the property of an agency or instrumentality of the foreign state. Part III explores the intractable problem of recovery in terrorist state exception cases and the unfortunate foreign policy and constitutional ramifications …

Terrorism, The Law And Politics As Usual: A Comparison Of Anti-Terrorism Legislation Before And After 9/11, Mona Conway

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Transactional Enforcement Discovery, Aaron D. Simowitz

Fordham Law Review

Joseph Stiglitz described the current Argentine sovereign debt crisis as “America throwing a bomb into the global economic system.” And yet, the U.S. Supreme Court decided to tackle only one head of this massive hydra. Presented with numerous issues arising from the controversy, the Court granted certiorari only on the issue of whether the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) blocked Argentina’s creditors from obtaining discovery of Argentina’s worldwide financial transactions. Justice Scalia, writing for the Court, concluded that because the FSIA says nothing on its face about discovery—it says nothing about discovery.

But the majority did not grapple with the …

The Liability Of Foreign Governments Under United States Antitrust Laws, James F. Ponsoldt, Jesse Stone

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Sovereign Immunity - Taxation - Residence Of Foreign Sovereign Diplomatic And Consular Staff Is Immune From Taxation Under A Bilateral Agreement And The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, Maija S. Blaubergs

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Foreign Sovereign Immunity - Rex V. Cia. Pervana De Vapores, S.A., Richard O. Ward

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Minimum Contacts Jurisdiction Under The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, Eric Johnson, Chrisanne Worthington

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Current Legal Matters Affecting Central Banks, Robert C. Effros

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Panel Ii: General Discussion, Georgia Journal Of International And Comparative Law

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Foreign Sovereign Immunity - Whether United States Embassies Are Jurisdictional Territory Under The Non-Commercial Tort Exception Of The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, Jill M. Conley

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act - Immunity Exception Provisions Of § 1330(A) - Harris Corp. V. National Iranian Radio & Television, Melanie Howell

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Petitioning Foreign Governments: The Act Of State And Noerr-Pennington Doctrines, Don R. Sampen

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Crisis At The Border: A Need To Reexamine The Doctrine Of Sovereign Immunity., Guinevere E. Moore, Robert T. Moore

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Altercations between Border Patrol agents and nationals along the United States-Mexico border continue to reveal a trend of disproportionate use of force. This often results in death and a lack of justice in American courts. To hold the American government accountable for the actions of their agents, the United States should adopt a policy of waiving its sovereign immunity in cases where there have been violations of fundamental human rights.

The foreign sovereign immunity doctrine states a foreign sovereign cannot be brought into a United States court without first waiving its sovereign immunity from suit. With this, the United States …

International Law - Enforcement Of International Centre For Settlement Of Investment Disputes Arbitral Awards In The United States - Signatories To The Convention On The Settlement Of Investment Disputes Between States And Nationals Of Other States Are Not Entitled To Sovereign Immunity With Respect To Enforcement Of Icsid Arbitral Awards, Liberian Eastern Timber Corp. V. Government Of Republic Of Liberia, 650 F. Supp. 73 (S.D.N.Y.1986), Dorothy B. Franzoni

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Routine Torture Practices Of The Saudi Arabian Government As "Commercial Activity" Within The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act Of 1976 In The Wake Of Saudi Arabia V. Nelson, 113 S. Ct. 1471 (1993)., Keith D. Bodoh

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Dead Man's Hand: Reshuffling Foreign Sovereign Immunities In U.S. Human Rights Litigation, David J. Bederman

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Denying Reparation For Slave And Forced Laborers In World War Ii And The Ensuing Humanitarian Rights Implications: A Case Study Of The Icj’S Recent Decision In Jurisdictional Immunities Of The State (Ger. V. It.: Greece Intervening), Morgan L. Klinzing

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act: The Roadblocks To Recovery, Sivonnia L. Hunt

Seventh Circuit Review

This Article focuses on the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act's (FSIA) state-sponsored terrorism exception and roadblocks created by judicial rulings in this area. Through litigation, courts expanded the FSIA beyond Congress' intent to allow injured U.S. citizens to bring state law claims in federal court for damages resulting from a terrorist action supported by a foreign state. However, other courts took a restrictive approach, barring these claims. This shift led Congress to revise the FSIA to carry out its true intent.

There are three parts to this Article. Part I introduces the FSIA and its original exception for state-sponsored terrorism. It …

Apportioning Responsibility Among Joint Tortfeasors For International Law Violations, Roger P. Alford

Pepperdine Law Review

With the new wave of claims against corporations for human rights violations – particularly in the context of aiding and abetting government abuse – there are unusually difficult problems of joint tortfeasor liability. In many circumstances, one tortfeasor – the corporation – is a deep-pocketed defendant, easily subject to suit, but only marginally involved in the unlawful conduct. Another tortfeasor – the sovereign – is a central player in the unlawful conduct, but, with limited exceptions, is immune from suit under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act. A third tortfeasor – the low-level security personnel – accused of actually committing the …

Samantar And Executive Power, Peter B. Rutledge

Scholarly Works

This essay examines Samantar v. Yousuf in the context of broader debate about the relationship between federal common law and executive power. Samantar represents simply the latest effort by the Executive Branch to literally shape the meaning of law through a process referred to in the literature as “executive lawmaking.” While traditional accounts of executive lawmaking typically have treated the idea as a singular concept, Samantar demonstrates the need to bifurcate the concept into at least two different categories: acts of executive lawmaking decoupled from pending litigation and acts of executive lawmaking taken expressly in response to litigation. As Samantar …