Immunity of government leaders Many forms of immunity are granted to
government leaders to
rule over the world,
continent,
nation,
province,
urban area and
rural area without fear of being sued or charged with a crime for so doing: •
Sovereign immunity, the prevention of lawsuits or prosecution against rulers or governments without their given consent •
Sovereign immunity in the United States bars suit against federal, state, and tribal governments, which cannot be sued without their consent. Governmental consent to be sued is expressed through legislation as a limited waiver of sovereign immunity •
Parliamentary immunity, immunity granted to
government leaders during their tenure and in the course of their duties •
Speech or Debate Clause, a provision in the
United States Constitution that provides immunity to members of Congress for statements made in either house •
Immunity from prosecution (international law), exclusion of elected officials from prosecution under international law •
State immunity, principle of international law that the government of a state is not amenable before the courts of another state
Immunity of government officials •
Judicial immunity, the immunity granted to the judiciary in the course of their official duties •
Qualified immunity, in the United States, sovereign immunity of all government officials and government employees performing tasks as part of the government's actions •
Absolute immunity, a type of sovereign immunity for all government officials and government employees that confers total immunity when acting in the course of their duties •
Diplomatic immunity, agreement between sovereign governments to exclude diplomats from local laws because grants of immunity are particularly important in intergovernmental relations, where traditions have arisen to prevent the
federal civil servants of a country's
foreign service cadre from being harassed by their host countries. Such immunities may be granted by law (statutory or constitutional) or by
treaty.
Immunity of resident citizens of a country participating in the legal process •
Amnesty law, a law that provides immunity for past crimes •
Spousal privilege, also called spousal immunity, protects a spouse from testifying against the defendant •
Witness immunity, immunity granted to a
witness in exchange for
testimony Immunity of private officials •
Reporter's privilege, a limited
First Amendment right many jurisdictions by statutory law or judicial decision have by which journalists may not be prosecuted for protecting their confidential sources from
discovery Immunity of nonprofit organizations •
Charitable immunity, immunity from liability granted to charities in many countries from the 19th century to the mid-20th century Such immunities may be granted by law or, for witness immunity, by
prosecutors or other authorities on a case-by-case basis, commonly as an agreement with the witnesses.
Immunity of protected persons in armed conflict •
Law of war, the law that provides immunity to protected persons in time of war •
Civilian immunity, immunity from being targeted in hostilities granted to civilians and other non-combatants as long as they are not participating in hostilities ==See also==