Minimum Contacts – A New Hurdle In Sovereign Disputes

The First Tuesday Update is our monthly take on current issues in commercial disputes, international arbitration, and judgment enforcement. This month, our update was released on the second Tuesday of November, in light of Election Day on November 5, 2024.

SCOTUS to Decide if Award Creditors Must Prove Minimum Contacts

We start with a recent update regarding certiorari review of a decision in the Ninth Circuit that addressed the requirements for exercising personal jurisdiction over a foreign sovereign under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA). The US Supreme Court granted certiorari over a pair of cases¹ related to the enforcement of an arbitral award and whether a plaintiff must demonstrate that a foreign sovereign has "minimum contacts" with the US before a federal court may assert personal jurisdiction over foreign states sued under the FSIA. The Ninth Circuit had reversed enforcement of the award on the grounds that the District Court incorrectly