(a) A Notice of Suit prescribed in Section 1608(a) of Title 28, United States Code, shall be prepared in the form that appears in the Annex to this section.

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Terms Used In 22 CFR 93.2

  • Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
  • Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.

(b) In preparing a Notice of Suit, a party shall in every instance supply the information specified in items 1 through 5 of the form appearing in the Annex to this section. A party shall also supply information specified in item 6, if notice of a default judgment is being served.

(c) In supplying the information specified in item 5, a party shall in simplified language summarize the nature and purpose of the proceeding (including principal allegations and claimed bases of liability), the reasons why the foreign state or political subdivision has been named as a party in the proceeding, and the nature and amount of relief sought. The purpose of item 5 is to enable foreign officials unfamiliar with American legal documents to ascertain the above information.

(d) A party may attach additional pages to the Notice of Suit to complete information under any item.

(e) A party shall attach, as part of the Notice of Suit, a copy of the Foreign State Immunities Act of 1976 (Pub. L. 94-583; 90 Stat. 2891).

Annex Notice of Suit (or of Default Judgment 1)

1 Relevant only if items 4 and 6 indicate that a default judgment has occurred.

1. Title of legal proceeding; full name of court; case or docket number.

2. Name of foreign state (or political subdivision) concerned:

3. Identity of the other Parties:

Judicial Documents

4. Nature of documents served (e.g., Summons and Complaint; Default Judgment):

5. Nature and purpose of the proceedings; why the foreign state (or political subdivision) has been named; relief requested:

6. Date of default judgment (if any):

7. A response to a “Summons” and “Complaint” is required to be submitted to the court, not later than 60 days after these documents are received. The response may present jurisdictional defenses (including defenses relating to state immunity).

8. The failure to submit a timely response with the court can result in a Default Judgment and a request for execution to satisfy the judgment. If a default judgment has been entered, a procedure may be available to vacate or open that judgment.

9. Questions relating to state immunities and to the jurisdiction of United States courts over foreign states are governed by the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, which appears in sections 1330, 1391(f), 1441(d), and 1602 through 1611, of Title 28, United States Code (Pub. L. 94-583; 90 Stat. 2891).

(Sec. 1608(a), Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, Pub. L. 94-583 (28 U.S.C. § 1608(a)); sec. 4, 63 Stat. 111, as amended (22 U.S.C. § 2658))[42 FR 6367, Feb. 2, 1977]