The Ninth Circuit’s decision last week in FG Hemisphere Assocs., LLC v. Unocal Corp., — F. Appx. —, No. 12-56031, 2014 WL 820803 (9th Cir. Mar. 4, 2014), serves as a reminder of the importance of the presumption of separateness in FSIA litigation.  The separate juridical status of entities is a critical issue under the FSIA, from the determination of status (28 U.S.C. § 1603(b)(1)) to the jurisdictional inquiry (Doe v. Holy See, 557 F.3d 1066, 1077-79 (9th Cir. 2009)) to post-judgment proceedings (EM Ltd. v. Republic of Argentina, 473 F.3d 463, 475-80 (2d Cir. 2007)).  FG Hemisphere Assocs. is a case in point: Applying California law, the Ninth Circuit declined to disregard the separate corporate status of two entities for purposes of the applicability of an exception to immunity from execution.  FG Hemisphere Assocs., 2014 WL 820803, at *1.  As shown by the Ninth Circuit’s latest decision, unless the case falls under the terrorism exception (cf. 28 U.S.C. § 1610(g)(1)), the presumption of separate juridical status remains crucial to preserving a foreign sovereign’s immunity from execution.