Supreme Court of the United States
Samantar v. Yousuf
June 1, 2010560 U.S. 305
Summary
The Supreme Court held that the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) does not govern the immunity of individual foreign officials. The Court reasoned that the statutory text defining 'foreign state' does not encompass individuals and that Congress intended to codify state immunity, not official immunity. Consequently, immunity for former officials like Samantar is determined under common law. Justice Scalia concurred in the judgment, criticizing the majority's reliance on legislative history.