State Immunity at the Dawn of the 21st Century: Twilight or Renaissance?

1/3 ABSTRACT STATE IMMUNITY AT THE DAWN OF THE 21ST CENTURY: TWILIGHT OR RENAISSANCE? JAROSLAV KUDRNA, ESQ., LL.M. State immunity is a foundation of public international law. Sovereign immunity is based on the fundamental principle of international law, namely the equality of states - par in parem non habet imperium. State immunity is thus a manifestation of state sovereignty and states demonstrate respect for the sovereignty of other states by according immunity to foreign states appearing before their courts. The principle of state immunity is a dynamic area of public international law. State practice is continually evolving through national laws and court rulings. The aim of this thesis is to describe the current development of state immunity and to identify possible future trends. Another objective is to draw from current developments and offer practical recommendations on state immunity for both investors and states. The 20th century can be described as a twilight of state immunity: an absolute theory of state immunity shifted towards a restrictive one. That century witnessed the decline and fragmentation of state immunity. In contrast, if the UN Convention on jurisdictional immunities of states and their property enters into force and is ratified by a large number of states, state immunity might..