Throughout the world, there are many entities engaged in commerce that are ultimately owned by governments. In most countries, as is the case in the United States, there are statutes that will determine if such an entity is entitled to sovereign immunity.
We are all familiar with private sector corporations that utilize labyrinth-like ownership structures. So, too, is it common for governments to own corporations through structures of tiered ownership. For purposes of sovereign immunity, as well as the application of the other attendant provisions governing lawsuits brought under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), should it matter whether a corporation is owned directly by a foreign state or owned indirectly by that state through its ownership of intervening entities? The fact is, that, depending on the circuit in which a suit is brought, the distinction could determine whether the claim is governed by the FSIA or whether it is considered an ordinary suit against a foreign corporation.
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