7 Immunity, 7.5 League of Arab States v T M., Belgian Court of Cassation, ILDC 42 (BE 2001), 12 March 2001

Subject(s):

Human rights remedies — Immunity from jurisdiction — Membership of international organizations — International organizations, practice and procedure — Responsibility of international organizations — Judgments

In League of Arab States, the Belgian Court of Cassation held that the League could not rely on its immunity from jurisdiction before Belgian courts, as, absent parliamentary approval, the Headquarters Agreement between Belgium and the League could not have domestic legal consequences. The Court added that there was no general principle of public international law in the sense of art. 38(1)(c) ICJ Statute to the effect of international organizations enjoying immunity from jurisdiction. This decision is in line with decisions from other jurisdictions, which require a treaty basis for international organization immunity to be successfully invoked. It contrasts however with an earlier decision by the Dutch Supreme Court (Spaans), pursuant to which the immunity of international organizations follows from customary international law.