State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Employment dispute — Austrian Cultural Institute in Warsaw — National of receiving State employed as librarian — Action for reinstatement — Whether Austrian Institute entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Legal status of Institute — Reciprocity as basis of immunity — The law of Poland

Consular relations — Honorary consul — Immunity — Attachment and execution — Bank account — Whether personal funds of honorary consul benefit from immunity — Requirement that funds allocated for consular functions can be separated from personal funds — Consulate situated in private offices of honorary consul — Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963 — Article 61

State immunity — Attachment and execution — Bank account — Funds allocated for diplomatic or consular functions — Whether immunity extends to private funds of diplomatic or consular agent — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — State corporation — Independent legal personality — Whether entitled to State immunity — Entitlement to immunity limited to acts performed jure imperii — Whether property subject to attachment — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Employment dispute — Locally recruited employee of foreign embassy — Employee a national of neither sending State nor receiving State — Claim for dismissal — Entitlement of foreign State to immunity — Distinction between sovereign and non-sovereign activities — Distinction between senior and subordinate employees — European Convention on State Immunity, 1972 — Whether Convention rules applicable to non-parties — State practice

Diplomatic relations — Immunity — Embassy technical and administrative staff — Right to institute proceedings in courts of receiving State — Whether authorization of sending State required — National of neither sending nor receiving State — Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, 1961, Article 32(3) Sources of international law — Treaties — European Convention on State Immunity, 1972 — Whether declaratory of existing rules of customary international law — Whether applicable to third States — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Dispute over moveable property — Distinction between sovereign and non-sovereign activities — Property right of foreign State based on public law — Legislation for the protection of objects of historical interest — Whether foreign State immune from claim for return of property

States — Sovereignty and independence — In foreign relations — Request for mutual assistance by foreign State — European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters, 1959 — Article 6(2) — Duty to return property handed over as soon as possible — Proceedings instituted by individual in requested State for return of property — Whether requesting State entitled to immunity from jurisdiction

Relationship of international law and municipal law — Recognition and enforcement of foreign laws — Public law of foreign State — Whether application of such law by municipal courts is admissible — Whether courts may take foreign public law into account — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Attachment and execution — Foreign central bank funds — Whether immune from attachment — Whether funds held for non-commercial purpose — Requirement to establish specific allocation of funds for sovereign purposes — European Convention on State Immunity, 1972, Article 23 — Divergence from existing rules of customary international law — Whether Convention rules applicable to non-parties

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Commercial activity — Agreement for construction of milk pasteurization plant — Whether State party entitled to immunity in action for breach of contract — Whether nature or purpose of act decisive — Requirement of close connection between dispute and forum State

Sources of international law — Treaties — European Convention on State Immunity, 1972 — Whether declaratory of existing rules of customary international law — Whether applicable to States not party to Convention — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — State corporation — Independent legal personality — Whether entitled to State immunity — Whether immunity can be invoked by third party acting on behalf of foreign State corporation — Whether property subject to attachment — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Building contract — Alteration work to buildings owned by foreign State — Whether foreign State entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Whether conclusion of contract for such work a sovereign or commercial activity

State immunity — Attachment and execution — Criteria for determining which assets immune from execution — Assets designated for sovereign tasks — Buildings operated by Institute of Emigration of foreign State — Use of buildings as cultural, educational and social centre for foreign workers — Whether such use relates to the exercise of sovereign powers — Whether such buildings immune from execution — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Sovereign acts — Expropriation of immovable property owned by emigrant leaving Romania — Compulsory compensation fixed but not paid in Romania — Attachment and execution — Attempt to obtain attachment of Romanian State property in Switzerland to secure payment of debt — Entitlement of expropriating State to State immunity

Expropriation — Compensation — Securing payment of compensation — Compensation awarded but not paid — Action for attachment to obtain payment of debt — Whether expropriating State entitled to immunity — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Foreign States — Institutes of foreign States — Vatican City Institute for Religious Works — Scope of entitlement of Institute and its officials to jurisdictional immunity — Attachment and execution — Bank accounts — Seizure of documents relating to accounts — Criteria for determining which assets immune from execution — Immunity of assets allegedly used for performance of sovereign functions — Whether specific allocation of funds for sovereign tasks required

States — Holy See — Vatican City — Entitlement of Holy See to sovereign immunity

States — Sovereignty and independence — In foreign relations — Request for mutual assistance by foreign State — Request for seizure of documents relating to bank deposits of Vatican City Institute — Whether immunity from execution prevents seizure of documents — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Head of State's immunity — Former Head of State — Whether former Head of State entitled to immunity from the jurisdiction of courts in other States — Action by new government to recover property allegedly misappropriated by former Head of State

Governments — Change of government — Effects — Action by new government to recover property allegedly misappropriated by former Head of State — The law of Switzerland

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Commercial activity — Agreement for construction of railway line — Whether commercial — Waiver — Arbitration — Whether signature of arbitration clause constitutes waiver of jurisdictional immunity — Whether waiver extending to proceedings instituted to obtain exequatur for arbitral award

State immunity — Attachment and execution — Debts owed to foreign State for overflight of territory by commercial aircraft — Whether liable to attachment to enforce payment of arbitral award against foreign State — Whether such debts result from State's exercise of sovereign powers

Arbitration — Arbitration between company and foreign State — Award — Binding force of award — Burden of proof — New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, 1958 — Enforcement — Whether signature of arbitration clause constitutes waiver of jurisdictional immunity for proceedings before municipal courts instituted to obtain exequatur for award

Arbitration — Procedure — Powers of arbitrators — Interpretation of treaties — Whether arbitrators empowered to interpret inter-State treaty affecting private interests of parties to arbitration — Whether arbitrators bound by government interpretation of treaty

Treaties — Application — By arbitral tribunal — Clear text — Interpretation — Agencies of interpretation — Arbitral tribunal — Circumstances in which arbitral tribunal empowered to interpret treaties — Whether arbitrators bound by government interpretation

Claims — State control over private claims — Effects of inter-State agreement settling claim on rights of private claimant

Economics, trade and finance — State contracts — Arbitration — Award — Recognition and enforcement — The law of France

State immunity — Attachment and execution — State corporation — Independent legal personality — Whether entitled to immunity from attachment

Arbitration — Procedure — Competence — ICSID arbitration — Whether competence of tribunal excludes jurisdiction of municipal courts — Interim relief — Whether parties entitled to seek interim relief from municipal courts in order to guarantee execution of subsequent award — Washington Convention for the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States, 1965 — Article 26

Economics, trade and finance — State contracts — ICSID arbitration — Whether recourse to municipal courts for interim relief excluded

Treaties — Interpretation — Powers of municipal courts — The law of France

International organizations — Immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — European Organization for Nuclear Research (“CERN”) — Extension of activities — Whether affecting scope of jurisdictional immunity — Whether requiring modification of agreements with receiving State concerning status of CERN

International organizations — Powers — CERN — Extension of activities — Lease of additional land for new installations — Whether requiring modification of agreements with receiving State concerning status of CERN

Environment — Nuclear energy — Construction of underground facility for subnuclear particle research by international organization — Effect on environment — Adequacy of impact studies — Control by municipal courts

Expropriation — Public interest — Land required for lease to international organization — Decree declaring acquisition of land a matter of urgent public utility — Whether acquisition requiring amendment of agreements between receiving State and international organization or municipal legal enactment — The law of France

State responsibility — For 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

Economics, trade and finance — State contracts — Liability for debts — Bank controlled by State — Whether liable for debts incurred by State

Arbitration — Enforcement of award — ICSID arbitration — Enforcement against foreign State — Bank controlled by foreign State — Whether liable for award against State — The law of France

State responsibility — For debts — State corporations — Whether endowed with independent legal personality — Whether such corporations may be held liable for each other's debts — Independence of such corporations in socialist State

Economics, trade and finance — State corporations — Legal status — Whether such corporations may be held liable for each other's debts — Relevance of State monopoly over trade and commerce in socialist State — The law of France

Arbitration — Recognition of award — ICC arbitration — Action for annulment before municipal courts — Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, 1958 — Whether applicable — Whether requiring national court to hear challenge to award rendered in another State

Economics, trade and finance — State contracts — Arbitration — Award — Application to municipal courts for annulment — The law of France

Diplomatic relations — Immunity — Family of diplomatic agent — Transit through third State — Immunity from criminal jurisdiction — Wife of diplomatic agent travelling separately from her husband — Scope of immunity — Waiver — Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, 1961 — Articles 40(1) and 32 — The law of Belgium

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Employment dispute — Commercial Office of Portugal in Brussels — National of sending State employed by Office — Dismissal without compensation — Whether Commercial Office entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Legal status of Office — Nature of employment relationship — Distinction between sovereign and non-sovereign activities

Diplomatic relations — Immunity — Entitlement to — Whether restricted to natural persons — Whether Commercial Office entitled to diplomatic immunity — The law of Belgium