Immunities of International Organizations before Domestic Courts: Reflections on the Collective Labour Case against the European Patent Organization

Abstract

The Netherlands is home to a substantial number of international organizations, which on the basis of international agreements are entitled to immunity from jurisdiction and enforcement before Dutch courts. This immunity grant has not stopped claimants from suing international organizations in The Netherlands, sometimes successfully. Dutch courts have indeed proved willing to entertain claims that a particular activity of the organization was not necessary for the fulfilment of its functions, or that the organization failed to offer an alternative remedy. In a recent case against the European Patent Organization, a Dutch court dismissed the organization’s immunity on the ground that it failed to offer an alternative remedy and that the impugned substantive violations rose to the level of fundamental rights violations. The author supports this approach, with some reservations, but regrets the quasi-absolute immunity from enforcement which international organizations continue to enjoy.