Chapter VIII. Decisions of national tribunals

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CHAPTER VIII

DECISIONS OF NATIONAL TRIBu~LS

1. FRANCE LOHER COURT OF THE SEINE

   Essayan v. Jouve: Judgement of 1 October 1962.1/

   Officials of the United Nations are immune from legal process only in respect of acts performed by them in their official capacity (artic+e '1) section 18 (a), of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations) - The ordinary law of diplomatic immunity does not apply.

   In an action relating to the occupation of a private dwelling the defendant, a French national and a representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, had contested the jurisdiction of the court on the ground that, as a diplomatic agent in France of an i~ternational body, he enjoyed diplomatic in~unity

   which he could not waive and which according to judicial authority even covered acts done by an agent as a private person. He cited in partic:.lar an agreement of

   18 February 1953 between the French Government and. the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in which the Government had granted to the High Commissionerls representatives in France the benefits and immunities conferred by the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.

   In its judgement the court rejected this plea, pointing out that the immunity from legal process granted to representatives of the High Commissioner by article V, section 18 (a), of that Convention, which had been ratified by France, was expressly restricted to their official acts and thus clearly differed from the total immunity i?ranted to the envoys of foreign governments by the decree of

   13 Ventose, year 11. The court stated further that the granting of a special immunity to United Nations officials obviously implied that they could not, simply as such, be e~uated with envoys of foreign governments, and that such e~uality of

   treatment was also precluded by the fact that the United Nations was constituted

   ~uite differently from a foreign government.

   ~ Gazette du Palais, 16-19 February 1963.

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2. SYRIA

   COUNCIL OF STATE (ADVISORY SECTION)

   Exemption of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East from ulunicipal construction li~ence fees:

   Opinion of J.6 December 1962. ];,1

   Taxes (imp6ts) and fees (taxes), direct taxes and indirect taxes: interpretation of article 11, section 7 (a), of the Convention on the Privileges and Imrnunities of the United Nations - Primacy of...