09/10/2023

English Court has no jurisdiction in £126m claim against former King Juan Carlos I of Spain

The former King of Spain, His Majesty Juan Carlos de Borbon Y Borbon, succeeded on 6 October 2023 in his application for a ruling that the English Court had no jurisdiction to hear the claim brought against him for harassment by Corinna zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn.

Mrs Justice Collins Rice also ruled that if she had found that the court had had jurisdiction, she would have refused Mrs zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn’s application for permission to amend her claim, and would have struck out the claim as disclosing no real prospect of success.

The claim, for an injunction and £126m damages, started in December 2020.

In December 2022 the Court of Appeal ruled that the court had no jurisdiction to try certain of the allegations because they were subject to sovereign immunity. In her judgment, Mrs Justice Collins Rice made further rulings to the effect that certain pre-abdication allegations sought to be re-introduced by way of background, context and/or similar fact evidence remained covered by immunity irrespective of whether they were pursued as an element of the pleaded cause of action.

Alexander Thompson, together with Adam Wolanski KC, Derek O’Sullivan KC and Clara Hamer, acted for the former king.

Download the judgment or summary.