LOS ANGELES – October 11, 2012 – In a precedent-setting case, Arent Fox LLP secured a major victory for Rwandan President Paul Kagame when the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirmed a lower court ruling and dismissed a wrongful death suit filed by two widows of assassinated African presidents. Arent Fox partners Ambassador Pierre-Richard Prosper, Robert O’Brien, and Michael Cryan represented President Kagame in the case, Habyarimana, et al v. Kagame.

“The court’s decision is grounded in a respect for the separation of powers and a determination that the courts should abstain from intrusion into matters that could trammel the Executive Branch’s conduct of foreign policy,” said Amb. Prosper, the lead defense attorney in the case.

In affirming the lower court’s decision, the appeals court found that as a head of state recognized by the United States government, President Kagame was immune from suit. Previously, the US District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma rejected the plaintiffs’ arguments that the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) and the US Supreme Court’s 1997 decision in Clinton v. Jones, which held that that the sexual harassment suit against President Bill Clinton could proceed while he was still in office, dictated that the suit against President Kagame should continue. In its decision, the appeals court wrote “We must accept the United States’ suggestion that a foreign head of state is immune from suit — even for acts committed prior to assuming office.”

Amb. Prosper was the US Ambassador-at-Large in charge of the Secretary of State’s Office of War Crimes Issues. Prior to that, he served as a war crimes prosecutor for the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda from 1996 to 1998, and he is a former state and federal prosecutor. His practice centers on international government relations and trade, mediation and internal assessments, and investigations on behalf of government entities and companies. Amb. Prosper is a member of the Litigation, Government Relations, and International Trade practices.

Mr. O’Brien is the managing partner of Arent Fox’s Los Angeles office and is a former US Representative to the United Nations (UN). His practice focuses on commercial litigation and domestic and international arbitration, including intellectual property, entertainment, complex business disputes, and election law matters.

Mr. Cryan focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation and domestic and international arbitration. He is a member of the Litigation, Health Care, Insurance, Intellectual Property, and Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring Practices in Los Angeles and New York.

The appeals court’s decision can be read here.