The Supreme Court decided a number of significant business cases in the 2019 and 2020 terms. To outside observers, the decisions are characterized largely by continuity and incrementalism—we did not see a swinging pendulum of...more
The U.S. Supreme Court recently handed down its decision on the scope of the Alien Tort Statute (ATS), following an appeal by Nestle USA, Inc., the U.S. affiliate of Swiss-based Nestle (Nestle USA), and Cargill, Inc....more
On June 17, the U.S. Supreme Court held that U.S. corporations are not liable for alleged abuses against non-U.S. citizens in foreign countries merely because general operational decisions made in the United States...more
In a decision issued June 17, the US Supreme Court further limited the ability of plaintiffs to seek redress in US courts for human rights abuses that occur overseas, but did not go as far in restricting those suits as some...more
In Nestle, six citizens of Mali claimed they were trafficked into and enslaved on cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast. Pursuant to the ATS, these former child slaves sought to impose liability upon Nestle, Cargill, and other U.S....more
On June 17, 2021, in Nestle USA Inc. v. Doe, the United States Supreme Court reversed a Ninth Circuit decision that would have allowed foreign cocoa workers to pursue claims against Nestlé USA, Inc. (Nestle), Cargill, Inc....more
A recent Supreme Court decision declines to apply the ATS to general corporate activity in the United States to reach violations of international law alleged to occur in other countries. The Alien Tort Statute (ATS) requires...more
What follows is a brief account of some of the notable U.S. environmental and administrative law cases recently decided. THE U.S. SUPREME COURT - Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution vests the President, with the advice...more
Key Takeaways - In its just-issued opinion in Nestle USA, Inc. v. Doe, No. 19-416, slip op. (2021), the Supreme Court reaffirmed its holding from Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 569 U. S. 108 (2013), that the Alien Tort...more
California v. Texas, Nos. 19-840, 19-1019: The Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, as it is commonly known, requires individuals to maintain a minimum level of health insurance coverage. As originally passed, the Act...more
On June 17, 2021, the Supreme Court held in Nestle USA, Inc. v. Doe I, that a plaintiff seeking domestic application of the Alien Tort Statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1350 (“ATS”), must demonstrate that the facts giving rise to the...more
The first months of the Supreme Court’s 2020 term have had an aura of fatigue: a nation gripped by the COVID-19 pandemic, a court adjusting to a new colleague and an unusually light caseload (to be argued by telephone)....more
On September 23, 2020, a panel of Skadden attorneys hosted a webinar entitled “Key Supreme Court Cases From the 2019-20 Term and a Look Ahead to the 2020-21 Term.” Panelists Julie Bédard, Boris Bershteyn, Jocelyn E. Strauber...more
In this episode, recorded on Sept. 14, Akin Gump Supreme Court and appellate practice co-head Pratik Shah returns to review the 2019 Supreme Court Term and preview the big cases and topics in the October 2020 Term. Among...more
Welcome to the second edition of BHR 360, our bi-annual Business and Human Rights newsletter. In the last edition, we looked at key BHR trends and what to watch out for in 2018. In this edition, we look back on a year full of...more
US Courts Will Decide Whether to Enforce US$2 Billion Award Against Petróleos de Venezuela - In April 2018, an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) tribunal awarded US$2.04 billion in damages to two subsidiaries of U.S....more
On April 24, 2018, in a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that foreign corporations cannot be sued in the United States under the Alien Tort Statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1350 ("ATS"). ...more
The U.S. Supreme Court recently held in Jesner v. Arab Bank, PLC that foreign corporations cannot be sued under the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”). This statute, enacted by the first Congress in 1789, is a jurisdictional statute...more
In Jesner v. Arab Bank, PLC, 584 U.S. ___, 2018 WL 1914663 (U.S. Apr. 24, 2018) (Kennedy, J.), the Supreme Court of the United States held that foreign corporations may not be sued under the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”), 28...more
• The Supreme Court in Jesner v. Arab Bank ruled 5-4 that suits against foreign corporations under the ATS are barred, answering a question left unresolved in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. • Although the decision...more
Resolving a circuit split, the U.S. Supreme Court held Tuesday that common law liability under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) does not extend to foreign corporations. Jesner v. Arab Bank, PLC, No. 16-499, 2018 WL 1914663...more
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has ruled in the case of Jesner v Arab Bank. On a 5:4 majority, the court ruled that foreign corporations are excluded from the scope of the Alien Tort Statute (ATS). ...more
The Supreme Court of the United States issued three decisions today: Oil States Energy Services, LLC v. Greene’s Energy Group, LLC, No. 16-712: The Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, 35 U.S.C. §100 et seq., went into effect...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
On April 24, 2018, the Supreme Court decided Jesner v. Arab Bank, PLC, No. 16-499, holding that foreign corporations may not be defendants in suits brought under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS), 28 U.S.C. § 1350....more