On December 1, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in a pair of related cases presenting questions about the scope of the Alien Tort Statute (ATS), a frequent topic of debate before the Court in recent years. In...more
On April 24, the U.S. Supreme Court held that plaintiffs may not bring claims against corporations domiciled outside the United States in Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) cases....more
For Alien Tort-watchers, all eyes are focused on the Supreme Court and the pending decision in Jesner v. Arab Bank, which may determine that corporations are not appropriate defendants in cases brought pursuant to the Alien...more
On Monday, April 3, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for a writ of certiorari filed by plaintiffs in Jesner v. Arab Bank, No. 16-499. The case may once and for all determine whether companies are appropriate...more
In the emerging area of business and human rights, the endorsement of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) by the U.N. Human Rights Council five years ago marked a watershed event. The...more
It’s Friday and time for another overview of developments in the field of business and human rights that we’ve been monitoring. This week’s post includes: updates on litigation in the Doe v. Nestle case; a private...more
On August 24, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of plaintiffs’ claims in a case filed against Lebanese Canadian Bank pursuant to the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”). Plaintiffs in the case, Licci et al. v....more
A recent U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruling is an important decision for corporations with foreign operations. In 2011, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum...more
On December 8, 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (“Second Circuit”) issued its decision in In re Arab Bank, PLC Alien Tort Statute Litigation, which involved claims brought against Arab Bank, PLC (“Arab...more
On December 8, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of plaintiffs’ claims in five consolidated cases against Arab Bank, PLC. Plaintiffs in each of the cases alleged that they, or their family members, had...more
On December 8, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the District Court’s dismissal of claims by plaintiffs against Arab Bank, a corporation, under the Alien Tort Statute (the “ATS”) 28.U.S.C...more
Recent class actions have claimed that companies have violated California consumer fraud and unfair competition laws resulting from alleged forced labor in their global supply chains. These state law claims argue that...more
Non-Canadian workers are increasingly suing their employers in Canadian courts for human rights violations allegedly committed outside Canada by the companies themselves or by other entities in their supply chains. This...more
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum upholding the dismissal of an Alien Tort Claims Act (ATCA) suit, left a great deal unanswered. The Kiobel decision did, however, limit the potential...more
Alien Tort GavelIn July, we posted about two recent decisions by federal appellate courts that sought to define the parameters of the “touch and concern” standard established by the Supreme Court in its 2012 decision in...more
In a mid-April decision in the In re: South African Apartheid Litigation, the Southern District of New York (“SDNY”) has tackled one of the most pressing legal questions left unanswered by the Supreme Court last year in...more
The past few months have seen a few interesting developments in cases in which Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) claims factor prominently. This judicial activity, much of which focuses on the significance of the presumption against...more
In Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 133 S.Ct. 1659 (2013), the United States Supreme Court addressed the applicability of the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) to alleged violations of international law committed by...more
Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum a number of questions remain as to whether corporations may be held liable under the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) for serious violations of human rights....more
In the span of less than a week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., a decision concerning the reach of the Alien Tort Statute, and granted certiorari in Bauman v....more
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., No. 10-1491 pertaining to the reach of the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”). This decision states that the ATS does not apply to conduct...more
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, No. 10–1491 (U.S. Apr. 17, 2013), a significant decision holding that the so-called “Alien Tort Claims Act” or “Alien Tort...more
The U.S. Supreme Court granted cert on April 22 in two important cases for the future application of the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) following its decision last week in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum. ...more
This week the U.S. Supreme Court issued its much-awaited decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., which addressed the question of whether a federal court may recognize a cause of action under the Alien Tort Statute...more
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