Gouvernement de la République Démocratique Du Congo v. Venne
Canada Supreme Court
[1971] S.C.R. 997
- Written by David Bloom, JD
Facts
Jean Venne (plaintiff), an architect, was retained by the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (the Congo) (defendant) to provide architectural plans for the construction of a national pavilion. Venne provided the architectural plans and billed the Congo for Venne’s services. The Congo refused to pay Venne’s bill after deciding not to build the pavilion. Venne sued the Congo in a Canadian court. The Congo objected to the suit on the grounds that the Congo, as a foreign sovereign state, was entitled to immunity and thus could not be sued in Canada. The trial court rejected the Congo’s objection, and the Congo appealed. The intermediate appellate court affirmed the trial court, finding that the dispute arose from a private commercial transaction and did not involve a sovereign act of a foreign government performed for a public purpose. The Congo appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Fauteux, C.J.)
Dissent (Laskin, J.)
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