Research On The Act Of State Doctrine In U.S.A

The act of state doctrine is one of the ancient and important theories in international law. Since the middle of the 19th century, the judicial practices of U.S have aroused scholars' great attention to this theory and created many controversies. By analyzing the judicial practices of American courts both theoretically and practically, and by comparing with other countries, this thesis mainly discusses the act of state doctrine in U.S, on the basis of the definition, theoretical foundation, historical evolution and trends of development of the doctrine.This thesis is divided into three chapters. Chapter One discusses some general problems in the act of state doctrine, including the definition of the doctrine, its relationship to the doctrine of sovereign immunity, and the historical evolution and theoretical foundation of the act of state doctrine. Chapter Two focuses on the judicial practices of the act of state doctrine in the U.S., involving the definition of "the act of state" and the specific methods American courts adopt to utilize this doctrine, elaborating the change of the act of state doctrine from traditionally rigid approach to modern flexible methods, from the regulative orientation to the balancing approach; furthermore, this chapter discusses the exceptions of the act of state doctrine, showing the unfixed nature of the doctrine. Chapter Three is mainly about the future development of the doctrine in the U.S. and the opinions scholars hold towards this doctrine, expounding the furtherly restricted attitude the legislative and judicial fields have towards this doctrine; meanwhile, this chapter also introduces judicial practices of the act of states doctrine in some other countries, and makes a comparison with the U.S., advocating the necessity and legitimacy of the act of state doctrine in the U.S. and proposing some suggestions to resolve the problems involved in the act of state doctrine.