Abstract
The purpose of this note is to produce a useful guide to the German Sovereign Immunity Defense by analyzing both what German courts are currently deciding and are likely to decide in the future about a sovereign entity’s ability to claim immunity from jurisdiction or judgment. In order to better predict whether suit in German courts will be fruitful for the plaintiff or harmful to the defendant, this note’s analysis draws heavily on German court decisions and persuasive German treatises.
This note begins with a history of the German restricted theory of both jurisdictional and execution immunity. The note provides a procedural analysis that demonstrates when a suit in Germany may be valid. Whether jurisdiction will be granted and whether execution will be considered proper are then analyzed, with discussion of both the “nature of the activity” and the “purpose of the activity” tests. Finally, recommendations are made for predicting the outcome of transactions with foreign sovereigns and suits involving these transactions.
Recommended Citation
Oehrle, Christopher John
(1991)
"German Sovereign Immunity Defense (Interpretation by the German Courts),"
Florida Journal of International Law: Vol. 6:
Iss.
3, Article 4.
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.ufl.edu/fjil/vol6/iss3/4