Sovereign immunity in the United States is the legal privilege by which the American federal, state, and tribal governments cannot be sued (
sovereign immunity). Local governments in most jurisdictions enjoy immunity from some forms of suit, particularly in
tort. Foreign governments enjoy immunity from suit (
state immunity) as provided in the
Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act. This principle is commonly expressed by the popular
legal maxim "rex non potest peccare," meaning "the king can do no wrong."