28 U.S.C. § 1606
Section 1606 · Extent of liability
This is § 4 of the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976
Amended 3 times on record
Applied in 183 court decisions — leading case Verlinden B. v. v. Central Bank of Nigeria (1983)
Most recently applied in The State of Missouri, ex rel. Eric S. Schmitt v. The Peoples Republic of China (January 2024)
Applied most in the District Circuit Circuit (91 decisions)
Cases citing this section usually also cite 28 U.S.C. § 1605 · 28 U.S.C. § 1604 · 28 U.S.C. § 1330
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment and consequential amendments — watch for a citation surge after a change. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
As to any claim for relief with respect to which a foreign state is not entitled to immunity under section 1605 or 1607 of this chapter, the foreign state shall be liable in the same manner and to the same extent as a private individual under like circumstances; but a foreign state except for an agency or instrumentality thereof shall not be liable for punitive damages; if, however, in any case wherein death was caused, the law of the place where the action or omission occurred provides, or has been construed to provide, for damages only punitive in nature, the foreign state shall be liable for actual or compensatory damages measured by the pecuniary injuries resulting from such death which were incurred by the persons for whose benefit the action was brought.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Amendments
2000—Pub. L. 106–386, which directed repeal of section 101(h) [title I, §117(b)] of div. A of Pub. L. 105–277, was executed by striking out “, except any action under section 1605(a)(7) or 1610(f)” after “punitive damages”, to reflect the probable intent of Congress. See 1998 Amendment note below.
1998—Pub. L. 105–277 inserted “, except any action under section 1605(a)(7) or 1610(f)” after “punitive damages”.
Effective Date of 1998 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 105–277 applicable to any claim for which a foreign state is not immune under section 1605(a)(7) of this title arising before, on, or after Oct. 21, 1998, see section 101(h) [title I, §117(c)] of Pub. L. 105–277, set out as a note under section 1610 of this title.