Is the country of origin of Covid-19 pandemic held responsible under international law?
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
COVID-19 pandemic causes a significant number of deaths globally and the economic impact to many states. The question is raised whether the country of origin of COVID-19 who failed to prevent the spread of the pandemic is held responsible under both domestic and international law. Under the latter, all WHO parties are required to inform WHO the accurate detail of public health information within 24 hours of its assessment. The failure to comply with this obligation constitutes an internationally wrongful act under rules of state responsibility. However, the commission of internationally wrongful act does not always give rise for the affected state to be indemnified by financial means. The amount of the damages is calculated based on the causation between the internationally wrongful act and its effects. If the causal chain is not fully established, the International Court of Justice may deny declaring the damages. It, rather, renders the declaratory remedy to the affected state. The provocation of responsibility of state under domestic court is shielded by the state immunity. Although the US law provides certain exceptions allowing individuals to sue foreign states under the state and federal courts, the possibility to win the case significantly relies upon the judges’ discretion on whether the territorial nexus can be established in the case.
Article Details
The copyright in this website and the material on this website (including without limitation the text, computer code, artwork, photographs, images, music, audio material, video material and audio-visual material on this website) is owned by Chulalongkorn Law Journal and its licensors.
1. Chulalongkorn Law Journal grants to you a worldwide non-exclusive royalty-free revocable license to:
- view this website and the material on this website on a computer or mobile device via a web browser;
- copy and store this website and the material on this website in your web browser cache memory; and
- print pages from this website for your use.
- All articles published by Chulalongkorn Law Journal are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. This permits anyone to copy, redistribute, remix, transmit and adapt the work provided the original work and source is appropriately cited.
2. Chulalongkorn Law Journal does not grant you any other rights in relation to this website or the material on this website. In other words, all other rights are reserved. For the avoidance of doubt, you must not adapt, edit, change, transform, publish, republish, distribute, redistribute, broadcast, rebroadcast or show or play in public this website or the material on this website (in any form or media) without appropriately and conspicuously citing the original work and source or Chulalongkorn Law Journal prior written permission.
3. You may request permission to use the copyright materials on this website by writing to journal@law.chula.ac.th.
4. Chulalongkorn Law Journal takes the protection of its copyright very seriously. If Chulalongkorn Law Journal discovers that you have used its copyright materials in contravention of the license above, Chulalongkorn Law Journal may bring legal proceedings against you seeking monetary damages and an injunction to stop you using those materials. You could also be ordered to pay legal costs.
If you become aware of any use of Chulalongkorn Law Journal's copyright materials that contravenes or may contravene the license above or any material on the website that you believe infringes your or any other person's copyright, please report this by email to journal@law.chula.ac.th.
References
“China Rejects Report that It Delayed COVID-19 Information Sharing with WHO.” Reuter, 3 June 2020. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-china-who/china-rejects-report-that-it-delayed-covid-19-information-sharing-with-who-idUSKBN23A0YM. Retrieved on 2 July 2020.
Antonio Coco & Talita de Souza Dias. “Part I : Due Diligence and COVID-19: States’ Duties to Prevent and Halt the Coronavirus Outbreak” EJIL:Talk!, 24 March 2020 https://www.ejiltalk.org/part-i-due-diligence-and-covid-19-states-duties-to-prevent-and-halt-the-coronavirus-outbreak/ Retrieved on 3 July 2020.
Armin Von Bogdandy & Pedro A. Villarreal. “International Law on Pandemic Response: A First Stocktaking in Light of the Coronavirus Crisis” MPIL Research Paper Series (2020-07): 6 – 7.
Asher Stockler. “At Least Four Class-Action Suits Filed Against China, Seeking Trillions Over Coronavirus Outbreak in U.S.” Newsweek, 16 April 2020. https://www.newsweek.com/china-class-action-lawsuits-covid-19-1498400. Retrieved on 5 July 2020
David P. Stewart. “The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act: A Guide for Judges.” Federal Judicial Center 2013 https://www.fjc.gov/sites/default/files/2014/FSIAGuide2013.pdf Retrieved on 5 July 2020.
Derrick Bryson Taylor. “How the Coronavirus Pandemic Unfolded: A Timeline.” The New York Times, 9 June 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/article/coronavirus-timeline.html. Retrieved on 30 June 2020.
Evaluating the Initial Impact of COVID-19 Containment Measures on Economic Activity.” OECD. https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/evaluating-the-initial-impact-of-covid-19-containment-measures-on-economic-activity-b1f6b68b. Retrieved on 30 June 2020.
H.L.A. Hart & Tony Honoré. Causation in the Law 2nd edition (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1985), 109 – 129
James Crawford. “Internationally Wrongful Acts.” in Max Planck Encyclopaedias of International Law II (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995), 1398 – 1403
James Crawford. State Responsibility: The General Part (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013), 219 – 232.
Jankiewicz, Castellanos León. “Causation and International State Responsibility.” 15 January 2012 http://www.sharesproject.nl/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Castellanos-Causation-and-International-State-Responsibility1.pdf. Retrieved on 30 June 2020
John B. Bellinger. “Suing China Over the Coronavirus won’t Help. Here’s What Can Work” The Washington Post, 23 April 2020. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/23/suing-china-over-coronavirus-wont-help-heres-what-can-work/. Retrieved on 30 June 2020
Nectar Gan et al. “Beijing Tightens Grip Over Coronavirus Research, Amid US-China Row on Virus Origin.” CNN, 16 April 2020. https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/12/asia/china-coronavirus-research-restrictions-intl-hnk/index.html. Retrieved on 2 July 2020
Niels Blokker. “Is the Authorization Authorized? Powers and Practice of the UN Security Council to Authorize the Use of Force by ‘Coalitions of the Able and Willing’.” European Journal of International Law 11 (2000): 541 – 568.
Sompong Sucharitkul. “Immunities of Foreign States Before National Authorities” Recueil des Cours 149 (1976): 87.
Stephen L. Carter. “No. China Can’t be Sued Over Coronavirus” Bloomberg Opinion, 25 March 2020. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2020-03-24/can-china-be-sued-over-the-coronavirus. Retrieved on 5 July 2020
Symeon C. Symeonides. “Choice of Law in Cross-Border Torts: Why Plaintiffs Win and Should” Hastings Law Journal 61 (2009): 337 – 411
Timo Kolvurova. “Due Diligence” Max Planck Encyclopedias of International Law. February 2010. https://opil.ouplaw.com/view/10.1093/law:epil/9780199231690/law-9780199231690-e1034. Retrieved on 3 July 2020
Xiaodon Yang. State Immunity in International Law (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012), pp 34 – 37