Until recently the judicial remedy of a constitutional complaint existed in very few European countries, but has now been introduced in a number of Central and Eastern European States. An increased awareness of human rights questions resulting from the abuse of State power by former regimes, combined with the room to manoeuvre provided by the radical change in the political and constitutional system, has led to the introduction or expansion of existing legal mechanisms for the protection of constitutional rights and freedoms in these countries. The following remarks are intended to give an overview of the main procedural questions relating to the nature and functioning of constitutional complaints, and to examine the extent to which Western European experience might be used in the development of constitutional complaint mechanisms in Central and Eastern Europe

On appeal by Iraqi Airways Company (IAC) the Court of Appeal (Nourse, Leggatt and Simon Brown LJJ) reversed the ruling of Evans J and held that in removing and “keeping safe” the Kuwaiti aircraft IAC was acting in the exercise of sovereign authority, and accordingly, by virtue of section 14(2) of the State Immunity Act 1978, was immune from the proceedings brought by Kuwait Airlines. The Court of Appeal also held that, by applying for a stay of the default judgment and performance of the conditions subject to which a stay was ordered, IAC had not submitted to the jurisdiction of the English court within the meaning of section 2(3)(6) of the Act (Transcript, 23 October 1993).