The Scope of the Tort Exception in the Law of State Immunity in the Light of the ICJ's 2012 Judgment on the Jurisdictional Immunities of the State

The Tort Exception is provided for in Article 11 of the European Convention and Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Jurisdictional Immunities of States and their Property as an important exception to the state immunity, but there is much ambiguity on the scope and content of this exception. The present article aims to clarify some aspects of this issue in the light of the ICJ’s 2012 judgment in the case of Jurisdictional Immunities of The State. There are some questions, including, whether this exception is transformed into customary international law, whether there is in customary international law a “tort exception” to State immunity applicable to acta jure imperii, and whether the acts committed on the territory of the forum State by the armed forces of a foreign State in the course of conducting an armed conflict are contained in the tort exception. The International Court of Justice, by examining state practice, judicial decisions and doctrine, has found that tort exception encompasses acta jure imperii but does not include the acts of armed forces in the course of conducting an armed conflict.