Immunity for unrecognised states and governments

Are States obliged to extend State immunity to States or governments that they do not recognise? An examination of State practice and opinio juris, in the form of decisions from domestic courts, shows that there are few relevant cases, and those that exist are more or less evenly divided on the question. There are good arguments in favour of deducing an obligation to extend immunity to unrecognised States or governments, although the sparse and divided State and opinio juris remains a problem. There may be stronger grounds for finding an obligation to grant immunity to unrecognised governments as compared to States.

Sondre Torp Helmersen is a Professor at the Faculty of Law at UiT The Arctic University of Norway. His research focuses on international law, especially the sources of international law, the prohibition of the use of force, the law of the sea, and the relationship between international law and national law. Sondre is author of several textbooks in international law and the recipient of UiT’s 2025 Young Researcher Award. Before joining academia, Sondre worked as a lawyer at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway.

Niko Pavlopoulos joined the UCL Faculty of Laws as a Lecturer in 2026. He is a generalist public international lawyer with specialist interests in statehood and state representation, state responsibility, international dispute settlement, and the law of immunities.

Niko previously served as a Judicial Assistant at the UK Supreme Court (2025-2026) and as an Associate Legal Officer at the International Court of Justice (2021-2025). Niko has also worked with leading arbitrators such as James Crawford and non-governmental institutions, including the British Institute of International and Comparative Law, the International Bar Association Human Rights Institute and Media Defence.

Federica Paddeu is Associate Professor in Law and Derek Bowett Fellow at Queens’ College, Cambridge, and fellow of the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law. Federica is a generalist international lawyer, with interests in State responsibility, the law and theory of exceptions in international law, the law on the use of force and international investment law. Recent publications include Justification and Excuse in International Law and Exceptions in International Law (with Prof Lorand Bartels). She serves in the Public International Law Advisory Panel at the British Institute for International and Comparative Law, and is a member of the Board of the European Society of International Law.

Niccolò is Associate Director of the Centre for International Governance and Dispute Resolution (CIGAD) and Senior Lecturer in Public International Law at The Dickson Poon School of Law, King's College London.

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