Ships, sovereign immunity and the subtleties of the Brussels I regulation: Case C-641/18 LG and others v. Rina SpA, Ente Registro Italiano Navale: Ships, sovereign immunity and the subtleties of Brussels I: Rina
| Published date | 01 June 2021 |
| Date | 01 June 2021 |
| Author | Vincent Power |
| DOI | 10.1177/1023263X211005973 |
| Subject Matter | Case Notes |
Case Note
Ships, sovereign immunity and
the subtleties of the Brussels
I regulation: Case C-641/18 LG
and others v. Rina SpA, Ente
Registro Italiano Navale: Ships,
sovereign immunity and the
subtleties of Brussels I: Rina
Vincent Power*
Abstract
More than 1000 passengers on a Panamanian-registered ferry drowned in the Red Sea. Some
survivors and relatives of some of the victims sued the classification and certification ship society
which had surveyed the ferry. Relying on the Brussels I Regulation, the plaintiffs sued the defen-
dants in the latter’s seat (in Italy). The defendants claimed sovereign immunity as they were acting
on behalf of Panama (that is, the flag state). The CJEU ruled that, generally, Article 1(1) of the
Regulation means that an action for damages, brought against private-law corporations engaged in
the classification and certifi cation of ships on behalf of, and upon deleg ation from, a non-EU
Member State, falls within the concept of ‘civil and commercial matters’ in the Regulation. The
defendants were therefore not immune. The CJEU qualified its ruling by saying that this is con-
ditional on the activity being not exercised under ‘public powers’ (within the meaning of EU law)
because then it would then be a sovereign and not a commercial activity. The CJEU thereby ruled
that the customary public international law principle that foreign states have immunity from
jurisdiction does not preclude an EU Member State court seised of a dispute from exercising
jurisdiction under the Regulation in these circumstances.
Keywords
Brussels I regulation, EU shipping law, state immunity, sovereign immunity, maritime law, Charter
of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, EuropeanConventionfortheProtectionof
Fundamental Rights and Freedoms, United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,
International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, Court of Justice of the European Union
* Partner, A&L Goodbody, Dublin; Adjunct Professor, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
Corresponding author:
Vincent Power, A&L Goodbody, Dublin
E-mail: vpower@algoodbody.com and 6492226@gmail.com
Maastricht Journal of European and
Comparative Law
2021, Vol. 28(3) 419–429
ªThe Author(s) 2021
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DOI: 10.1177/1023263X211005973
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