Federal Courts
183 Articles
Nestlé & Cargill v. Doe: What’s Not in the Supreme Court’s Opinions
The Court ruled out extraterritorial application of the Alien Tort Statute. But on other key questions -- including corporate liability, secondary liability, and the status of…
The Surprisingly Broad Implications of Nestlé USA, Inc. v. Doe for Human Rights Litigation and Extraterritoriality
In Nestlé USA, Inc. v. Doe, the U.S. Supreme Court took up the question of corporate liability for human rights violations under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) for the third time.…
State Secrets and the Torture of Abu Zubaydah
More than any case to have reached the Supreme Court, Abu Zubaydah’s case demonstrates the need to carefully scrutinize what information the Executive Branch can legitimately…
Don’t Place Judicial Accountability In The Dark
Efforts to ensure the safety and security of federal judges – including by shielding certain personal information, such as addresses, from public disclosure – are sadly necessary…
We Don’t Need to Reform the Supreme Court
Politicization of the judiciary in the name of correcting the politicization of the judiciary is a bad policy foundation.
Authoritarian Populism, Courts and Democratic Erosion
The uniquely strong American judicial system managed to hold the line and, ultimately, fend off Donald Trump’s assault on U.S. institutions.
Father-Son Separation at US Border Illustrates Lasting Harm That Demands Redress
The abuses they faced under the Trump administration's immigration policy echo those revealed in a new Human Rights Watch investigation.
Nestlé & Cargill v. Doe Series: Meet the “John Does” – the Children Enslaved in Nestlé & Cargill’s Supply Chain
[Editor’s Note: This article is part of a Just Security series on the consolidated cases of Nestlé USA, Inc. v. Doe I and Cargill Inc. v. Doe I, which was argued before…
Nestlé & Cargill v. Doe Series: Shielding American Corporations from Liability Undermines the United States’ Moral Authority
Corporate defendants argue that courts should let Congress decide if and when to impose liability for human rights abuses abroad. But Congress has already spoken: through the Trafficking…
Nestlé & Cargill v. Doe Series: Judicial Activism, Corporate Exceptionalism, and the Puzzlement of Nestlé v. Doe
Congress has amended the Alien Tort Statute only three times. Yet judicial interpretation has significantly limited the statute's reach through "shadow amendments" to the text.…
Nestlé & Cargill v. Doe Series: Holding the Aiders and Abettors of Atrocity to Account
Do the Alien Tort Statute and Torture Victim Protection Act apply to those who aid in atrocities? Human rights groups - who use the statutes to prosecute these crimes - say yes.
Nestlé & Cargill v. Doe Series: In Oral Arguments, Justices Weigh Liability for Chocolate Companies
U.S. corporations, including Nestle and Cargill, may face massive liability under the Alien Tort Statute for aiding and abetting slavery abroad. But does the ATS support such liability?…