A Study On The Application Of Exceptions To State Immunity In The Civil Claim Of Korean “Comfort Women”

Recently, 12 petitioners of Korean “comfort women” victims who were forced to be Japanese military sexual slavery by Japan during the World WarⅡ filed lawsuits against the Japanese government. They initially petitioned to Seoul Central District Court for commencing mediation procedure between petitioners and Japan, to compensate for damages to the war actrocities on 13 th August 2013. But Japanese government refused to attend all mediation sessions at a Seoul court over two years, and in the second half of 2015, petitioners decided to finish the mediation and sue Japanese government. This articles is a study on the application of exceptions to state immunity in the civil claim of Korean “comfort women” forced by Japan in WWⅡ.Under the rule of state immunity, the customary international law, foreign states have absolute immunity from jurisdiction of other states in principle. But many jurisdictions have today adopted restrictive immunity doctrine. Korean court has accepted the restrictive immunity doctrine since 1998. Thus, the Court has to consider whether Japan enjoys state immunity.According to the relative theory of state immunity, State immunity can not granted if relevant act is evaluated as not sovereign act. Concerning reasons for judgment of various precedents which dealt with foreign state?s tort during war, the nature of purpose of Japan?s torts to petitioners seems as sovereign of public act. But actually it is hard to consider it only as sovereign act. And some of states don?t consider it that separation of act as public act or individual act in the tort exception. Especially in the case of human rights, there are different views.Concerning violating the norms of Jus Cogens, State Immunity can not be render to violated state because it effect.In result, there are possibilities of exceptions of state immunity in theory.