The House of Representatives is currently considering legislation passed by the Senate that would change the law of foreign sovereign immunity in order to allow the families of victims of the 9/11 attacks to sue Saudi Arabia, where 15 of the 19 attackers were citizens, for its supposed culpability. Setting aside for a moment whether Saudi Arabia did have any contact with the terrorists—and it has vehemently denied that it does—the bill raises both policy and practical concerns. Congress should think carefully about the downsides of the legislation before enacting it, but if it does feel compelled to change the law, it should make sure that the real beneficiaries are the families of the victims and not their lawyers.

Foreign sovereign immunity is a doctrine that ensures that diplomatic disputes are resolved between national governments rather than in the courts. American courts have traditionally been very wary about impinging on the power of the other branches of the government to conduct foreign policy, and the United States gives foreign countries immunity from suit in the United States in order to ensure reciprocal treatment in foreign countries. The U.S. government does not want to find itself a defendant in foreign countries whenever the citizens of that country have a grievance arising out of U.S. foreign policy.