Immunities of States and their Officials

This chapter will discuss the principal immunity rules— state immunity (section III); diplomatic immunity and head of state immunity (section IV); functional immunity and consular immunity (section V)— through a selection of domestic immunity decisions. In addition, domestic immunity decisions on two thematic issues will be discussed: immunity as a rule of international or domestic law, and the impact of domestic immunity legislation (section II); and the tension between international immunity rules and the fundamental rights of individuals under domestic constitutional law or international human rights and criminal law (section VI). While the chapter addresses all different immunity rules applicable to states and their officials, it does not address all issues that arise within the context of the application of these rules. For questions as to the relation between immunity and jurisdiction, the definition of state, ex officio application, and waiver, we direct the reader to the ILDC database.