Introduction
The principle of sovereign immunity has its roots in the common
law adage that the king can do no wrong. Traditionally, this meant
that the sovereign- once embodied by the king- could not be sued or
impleaded in his own courts, nor could he be sued in foreign courts
without his consent. In Nigeria, this principle is embedded in our
legal and judicial system. For example, the constitutional
protection against civil and criminal proceedings granted to the
heads and deputy heads of the executive branches at both federal
and state levels is based on the doctrine of sovereign
immunity.
As nation-states have become more involved in international
commerce and trade, engaging in transactions with private entities,
the scope of sovereign immunity, its application, and significance
have come under scrutiny. Moreover, the rise of commercial
contracts that include arbitration agreements poses questions about
whether these clauses are enforceable against the
