Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA)
28 Articles

Sanctioning Human Trafficking Under the Global Magnitsky Program
This latest set of sanctions is a promising development, particularly as the State Department signaled its intent to prioritize using the Global Magnitsky program to address forced…

15 Years Later, Sri Lanka Continues to Deny Justice to Murdered Journalist
Lasantha’s murder, and the government’s failure to meaningfully investigate it, is a potent illustration of the importance and necessity of holding the perpetrators of crimes…

How to Get Away With Crimes Against Humanity: The Statutory Gap in US Law
Congress can bring justice for victims of crimes against humanity by passing a statute with universal jurisdiction.

The Just Security Podcast: The Mayor of Les Irois
Determined victims and creative lawyers used a U.S, law, the Torture Victims Protection Act, to hold a powerful mayor accountable.

Congress Should Close the ‘Crimes Against Humanity’ Loophole
Former U.S. Ambassador at Large for War Crimes David J. Scheffer and Kristin Smith on whether U.S. law is adequately equipped to investigate and prosecute atrocities as Congress…

Is MBS Entitled to Head of State Immunity?
A leading transnational law scholar on why MBS is not entitled to head of state immunity, the act of state doctrine does not bar claims in a civil suit arising from Khashoggi's…

From Syria Torture Trial to Liberian Massacre Case – A Plea for Bolstering Witness Protections in Human Rights Litigation
Witness testimony was key in reaching today's conviction of a former Syrian intelligence official for crimes against humanity. But the testimony placed witnesses and victims at…

Neither Truth Nor Reconciliation: Mexico’s President Betrays Commitment to Transitional Justice
Yet, regardless of the scale and acceleration of abuses, such concerns are marginalized or avoided at high-level US-Mexico meetings.

New Ruling Sheds Light on State-Paramilitary Cooperation in Colombia – and on the TVPA
A US court held that Colombian paramilitaries indisputably had a symbiotic relationship with the Colombian state and are therefore liable under the TVPA.

Historic Judgment in Liberian Massacre Case Advances US Law
A landmark case offers justice for victims - and new specificity on TVPA, ATS claims for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

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.…