Regina v. Bow Street Metropolitan Stipendiary Magistrate and Others, Ex Parte Pinochet Ugarte

1 A.C. 147 (1999)

Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
R
From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Regina v. Bow Street Metropolitan Stipendiary Magistrate and Others, Ex Parte Pinochet Ugarte

United Kingdom House of Lords
1 A.C. 147 (1999)

  • Written by Liz Nakamura, JD

Facts

In 1998, a Spanish judge for extradition requested that an English magistrate issue a warrant for the arrest of Pinochet (defendant), the former head of state of Chile. The request for a warrant charged that while head of state, Pinochet conspired with others to take hostage, torture, and kill numerous people, including Spanish citizens. Pinochet was arrested and brought before an English court. However, he argued that he was immune from arrest and could not properly be extradited. The English House of Lords considered Pinochet’s case twice. After issuing its first judgment, the House of Lords reversed itself on the ground that one of its justices had failed to disclose his affiliation with Amnesty International, an organization that had intervened in the case. In considering the case a second time, the House of Lords ruled on the issue of whether Pinochet could claim immunity, and whether the crimes he allegedly committed could be properly considered crimes under English law.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Lord Brown-Wilkinson)

Concurrence (Lord Hope)

Concurrence (Lord Millett)

Dissent (Lord Goff of Chieveley)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 810,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 810,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 810,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Criminal Law
Human Rights

Key Terms