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The Supreme Court Again Revisits (And May Rein In) Personal Jurisdiction: Two Cases Now Up Next Term

On April 22, 2013, the Supreme Court granted review in another personal jurisdiction case: DaimlerChrysler AG v. Bauman, No. 11-965 (cert. granted Apr. 22, 2013). The question presented in DaimlerChrysler is “whether it...more

United States Supreme Court Decides Question of Corporate Liability Under Alien Tort Statute On Broader Grounds

In Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., No. 10-1491, 2013 WL 1628935 (U.S. Apr. 17, 2013), the Supreme Court of the United States addressed the circuit split that arose following the 2010 decision of the United States Court...more

Supreme Court to Consider General Jurisdiction Over Foreign Parent Based on U.S. Subsidiary

On Monday, April 22, the United States Supreme Court agreed to hear DaimlerChrysler AG v. Bauman, which asks whether a foreign parent corporation can be subject to suit in the United States for wrongs allegedly committed by a...more

The Alien Tort Statute: Kiobel Dials It Back

In Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., No. 10-1491 (U.S. Apr. 17, 2013), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the presumption against extraterritoriality applies to claims under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS). Consequently, there...more

Supreme Court Holds that Plaintiffs Must Overcome Presumption Against Extraterritoriality in Alien Tort Statute Cases

Earlier today the Supreme Court issued its long-awaited ruling in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, the case that was to decide whether the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) could be applied to corporations as legal persons and...more

Privacy & Cybersecurity Update: Flaming Worms, Stuxnets and Other Cyber Threats — The European Union’s Response

The media is replete with reports of a botnet onslaught paralyzing Spamhaus, flaming worms usurping strategic information in the Middle East and a stuxnet super weapon wreaking physical damage to Iran’s nuclear reactors....more

Looking Ahead: Five Developments We’ll be Watching in 2013

As memories of New Year’s Eve fade, and another Inauguration Day winds down in Washington, D.C., it’s time to look ahead and identify key events and emerging trends that we think will help shape the business and human rights...more

November 2012: Appellate Litigation Update

Quinn Emanuel Opens Supreme Court’s October 2012 Term: On Monday, October 1, 2012, the Supreme Court reconvened for its first oral arguments after the summer recess. Quinn Emanuel’s Kathleen Sullivan argued in the very first...more

The Future of the Alien Tort Statute, Take II: The U.S. Supreme Court Hears New Arguments on Extraterritorial Liability

The U.S. Supreme Court started its new term on Monday with a holdover from the last term. The case of Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum was once again before the Court, this time with arguments focused on the question of...more

The Alien Tort Statute at a Crossroads: The High Court Revisits Extraterritorial Jurisdiction in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum...

Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, No. 10-1491, is among the most important business cases on the Supreme Court’s docket. At issue is whether a non-US company’s activities in Nigeria, which allegedly harmed Nigerians, may be...more

Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum

Supplemental Brief of Amicus Curiae The CATO Institute In Support of Respondents

Last term, the Supreme Court postponed its decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, a case that initially asked whether the Alien Tort Statute — one of our oldest laws (1789), giving federal courts jurisdiction over...more

"U.S. Supreme Court Holds That Only Natural Persons Can be Sued Under the Torture Victim Protection Act"

On April 18, 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court decided in Mohamad v. Palestinian Authority, No. 11-88, that parties may bring suit under the Torture Victim Protection Act of 1991 (TVPA) only against human beings — not...more

Would the End of the Alien Tort Statute Mean an End to Corporate Liability for Human Rights Abuses?

If the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down, or severely limits, the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”), what are the implications for plaintiffs and defendants in cases involving violations of international human rights law? The crystal...more

Extraterritoriality Becomes Focus of Kiobel Supreme Court; Are We Headed for Morrison II?

We have posted on the fascinating development of the law concerning the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”), 28 U.S.C. § 1350. The issues raised there are important in their own right and are at the center of many issues faced by the...more

"Supreme Court Broadens Its Review of Alien Tort Statute – May Limit Corporate Liability in Human Rights Lawsuits"

On March 5, 2012, only days after hearing oral argument in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., the U.S. Supreme Court ordered additional briefings to be filed and for the case to be reargued. This somewhat unusual move...more

Alien Tort Statute Development

Since we blogged about the Supreme Court’s certiorari grant in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, 10-1491, we figured we owe our readers an update about a significant status change. As we mentioned before, the Court...more

U.S. Supreme Court Review of Corporate Liability Under the Alien Tort Statute -- An Overview of the Oral Arguments in Kiobel v....

On February 28, in proceedings that were both closely watched and anxiously anticipated, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum. For the first time, the question of...more

Liability and Immunity for Human Rights Violations: The Impact of Current Legal Developments on Corporate Responsibility

It is likely that the coming year will see a number of legal developments relating to the immunity and liability of corporations, states, and individuals as recognized by U.S. courts.  With an increasing number of suits...more

Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co.

Brief of Amicus Curiae The CATO institute In Support Of Respondents

One of our oldest laws, the Alien Tort Statute (1789), grants federal courts jurisdiction over lawsuits brought by aliens for actions “in violation of the law of nations.” Courts have differed in their method...more

Second Circuit Exercises “Hypothetical Jurisdiction” To Dismiss Claim Rather than Address Subject Matter Jurisdiction Over...

Liu Bo Shan v. China Construction Bank Corp., No. 10-2992-cv (2d Cir. 2011)(summary order), reviewed on appeal claims alleging torture against China Construction Bank in alleged violation of the Torture Victim Protection Act,...more

Obama Administration States that Corporations are Proper Defendants in Alien Tort Cases

The Obama Administration has filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum in support of the plaintiffs' position that corporations are proper defendants in cases involving claims under...more

Corporate Liability Under The Alien Tort Statute, Splitting With Second Circuit

In two recent decisions, the United States Courts of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the Seventh Circuit each split with the Second Circuit’s 2010 decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 621 F.3d 111...more

TACA FLIGHT 390 OVERSHOOTS RUNWAY

Read article for interesting take on Tegucigalpa Airport from my perspective...more

Second Circuit Holds That Corporations Cannot Be Held Liable For Claims Brought Under The Alien Tort Statute

In Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., Nos. 06-4800-CV, 06-4876-CV, 2010 WL 3611392 (2d Cir. Sept. 17, 2010), the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit dismissed claims by Nigerian citizens against various...more

Bullet"iln" Volume 5 Issue 2 - July 13, 2006

Is this Issue: *Helmut Kohl to Be Keynote Speaker at 18th Annual ILN Conference Distributed by PR Newswire on behalf of International Lawyers Network *A Celebration of the ILN's Founding Members May 10, 2006 -...more