State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Employment dispute — Nurse employed by foreign embassy — Claim for damages for wrongful dismissal — Proper defendant — Distinction between jurisdictional immunity of foreign State and of its diplomatic agents — Whether foreign State entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Test of whether employee performing tasks in the interest of the public service of a foreign State — The law of France

State immunity — Immunity from jurisdiction — Foreign State — Dispute concerning works carried out on embassy residence — Claim by adjacent owners for damage caused to apartment building by alterations to embassy residence done without permission — Whether foreign State entitled to jurisdictional immunity

State responsibility — Claim against French State for loss arising from recognition by municipal courts of jurisdictional immunity of defendant — Whether claim directed against head of diplomatic mission or foreign State — Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, 1961, Article 31 — Whether application of Convention or specific rules on State immunity in issue and necessarily causing loss alleged — The law of France

International organizations — Personality — Legal personality of organization before courts of non-member States — Immunity — Jurisdictional immunity and immunity from execution — Legal basis for right of international organizations to invoke immunity — Whether requiring international agreement to which forum State is a party — Whether regional international organizations enjoying “objective international personality” binding on third States — Economic Community of West African States (“ECOWAS”) — Deposit of funds with Bank of Credit and Commerce International — National authorities putting Bank into liquidation and freezing accounts — Whether constituting measure of execution against international organization — Claim for repayment of funds by ECOWAS — Whether constituting waiver of immunity — The law of France

State immunity — Immunity from jurisdiction — Dispute over property rights — Building used as diplomatic mission by foreign State — Application by another foreign State aimed at obtaining recognition of property rights over building — Whether municipal courts may invoke immunity ex officio on behalf of foreign State — Whether municipal courts required to determine whether foreign State is likely to assert immunity in subsequent proceedings

Diplomatic relations — Immunity — Inviolability of premises of diplomatic mission — Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, 1961, Articles 22 and 31 — Scope of application — The law of France

State immunity — Head of State — Contract for supply of goods to Head of State — Claim for payment by supplier — Whether Head of State entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Whether contract involving exercise of sovereign powers or normal commercial dealings — The law of France

State immunity — Immunity from jurisdiction — State-controlled body — Whether entitled to assert immunity from jurisdiction of municipal courts — Conditions for immunity

State responsibility — Debts — State corporations — Whether endowed with independent legal personality — Whether liable for debts incurred by controlling State

Economics, trade and finance — State corporations — Legal status — Whether corporation with independent legal personality liable for debts contracted by controlling State — The law of France

International organizations — Immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Dismissal of official — Claim for damages for wrongful dismissal — Agreement on the Status of the Western European Union, 1955, Article 4 — Whether conferring jurisdictional immunity on the Western European Union — The law of France

International organizations — Officials — Immunity — Attachment and execution — Claim for attachment of salary of UNESCO official — Whether salaries of such officials can be subjected to attachment by court order — France — UNESCO Headquarters Agreement, 1954, Articles 6 and 14 — The law of France

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Embassy employee — Assistant in Press Section — Dispute concerning contract of employment — Whether foreign State entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Relevance of fact that employee had no special responsibility for public service — The law of France

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Employment dispute — Caretaker employed by foreign embassy — Claim for damages for wrongful dismissal — Whether foreign State entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Test of whether employee given “special” responsibility for performance of public service — The law of France

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Dispute concerning contract of employment — French national employed as laboratory technician under fixed-term contract by United States Department of Agriculture — Claim against United States for unlawful termination of contract — Whether United States enjoying jurisdictional immunity from proceedings instituted before municipal courts — Test of whether employment activities carried out within the framework of public service functions

State responsibility — For breaches of contractual obligation — Termination of employment contract — Whether force majeure where funding of programme not renewed by Congress — Whether provision entitling United States to terminate contract in such circumstances is contrary to public policy (ordre public) — The law of France

International organizations — United Nations — Immunities — United Nations General Assembly — Whether enjoying absolute immunity from suit — Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, 1946, Article 2 — International Organizations Immunities Act, Article 2(b) — Whether express waiver of immunity — The law of the United States

International organizations — United Nations — Privileges and immunities — Extent — Immunity of officials — Whether restrictive doctrine of immunity applicable — Action against United Nations officials — Whether officials immune from suit — Allegations of unlawful activities — Whether relevant to question of immunity — The law of the United States

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Head of State — Requirement that defendant be identified as Head of State — Extent of immunity of Head of State — King of Saudi Arabia — Officials — Immunity for acts undertaken in official capacity — Criteria for determining whether act undertaken in official or private capacity — Claim in tort

States — Head of State — Entitlement to sovereign immunity — King of Saudi Arabia — The law of the United States

International organizations — United Nations — Privileges and immunities — Extent — Immunity of officials — Whether restrictive doctrine of immunity applicable — Action against United Nations officials regarding United Nations operations in Somalia — Whether officials immune from suit — Allegations of unlawful activities — Whether relevant to question of immunity — Peacekeeping and other military operations — Whether lawful — Legality of United Nations operation in Somalia — The law of the United States

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Head of State — Requirement that defendant be identified as Head of State — Member of Royal Family in direct line of succession — Officials — Immunity for acts undertaken in official capacity — Criteria for determining whether act undertaken in official or private capacity — Claim in tort

States — Head of State — Entitlement to sovereign immunity — United Arab Emirates — Abu Dhabi — Abu Dhabi Royal Family

Relationship of international law and municipal law — Act of State doctrine — Limits of act of State doctrine in United States law — Relationship between act of State and State immunity — The law of the United States

Air — Terrorist attacks upon aircraft — State believed to have been involved in attack — Remedies — Civil action against State suspected of involvement — Whether State immune from suit

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Claim for damages against State suspected of involvement in terrorist attack upon aircraft — Waiver — Whether State deemed to have waived immunity in respect of acts contrary to jus cogens — Express waiver — Exception to immunity for tort committed within the territory of the forum — Whether explosion on United States aircraft over United Kingdom deemed to have occurred in the territory of the United States — Effect of United Nations Charter and Security Council resolution — Whether depriving State of immunity under United States Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act 1976

International organizations — United Nations — Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter — Security Council — Binding decision of Security Council — Effect in municipal law — Resolution 748 (1992) — Lockerbie bombing — Whether resolution removing immunity from jurisdiction of Libyan State before United States courts

Relationship of international law and municipal law — Resolutions of the United Nations Security Council — Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter — Whether vesting private right of action in individuals — The law of the United States

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Presumption that foreign State entitled to immunity unless one of the exceptions to immunity applicable — Waiver — Commercial activity — Non-commercial tort — Alleged violation of jus cogens norm — Action against Germany and Israel regarding alleged violation of treaty obligation to compensate Holocaust survivors — Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act 1976 — The law of the United States