An ambassador party to a lawsuit initiated by his nation and his embassy may not be deposed without a waiver of sovereign immunity, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia decided in Great Socialist People's Libyan Ara Jamahiriy et al. v. Ahmad Miski, docket number 06-2046, on January 25, 2010.
The defendant had responded to the complaint with a counterclaim and sought the ambassador's deposition. The court also ruled that Libya cannot rely on its sovereign immunity to defeat the counterclaim.
The memorandum and opinion is instructive and detailed. The case involves trademark and domain name law under the Lanham Act, 15 USC §1125(a)(1)(A) and (B) (2006), and the AntiCybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, 15 USC §1125(d) (2006), as well as counterclaimed compensation under tort law. -- Clemens Kochinke, partner, Berliner, Corcoran & Rowe, LLP, Washington, DC.
Thu, / Embassy Law Link