ALIEN TORT CLAIMS ACT

POLITICS
224 Years After the Judiciary Act, the U.S. Must Not Become a Safe Haven to Modern Pirates
By Katie Shay, Contributor
Legal and Policy Coordinator, International Corporate Accounta...
The Alien Tort Statute (ATS), all but ignored for almost the first 200 years of its existence, states that federal district courts "shall also have cognizance, ... of all causes where an alien sues for a tort only in violation of the law of nations or a treaty of the United States."
POLITICS
Supreme Court Appears Divided on Whether to Grant Corporations Immunity From Human Rights Suits
By Katie Redford, Contributor
Co-Founder and Director, EarthRights International
Several news stories and blog posts suggest that the Supreme Court is prepared to grant corporations immunity from human rights lawsuits. That was not a conclusion I thought could be easily drawn after the hearing.
POLITICS
9th Circuit Widens Court Split Over Suing Corporations
By Mike Sacks
POLITICS
How Big Oil Always Wins
By Emma Ruby-Sachs, Contributor
Attorney
There is another case of oil pollution with over fifteen years of "experience" that might make us nervous about any attempt to hold BP accountable in the courts.
POLITICS
Coca-Cola Co. Denies Involvement in Murder and Rape, Blames "U.S. Judicial System"
By Eric Michael Johnson, Contributor
Writer and academic
Coca-Cola has long marketed itself as synonymous with American values. But after recent allegations that it covered up acts of murder and rape at a Guatemalan subsidiary, Coca Cola may face up to justice.
BUSINESS
150 Years
By Robert Weissman, Contributor
President, Public Citizen
The 150-year sentence is headline grabbing, but what should surprise us is not that Madoff got such a long sentence, but that other corporate criminals escape with no criminal prosecution at all.
WORLDPOST
The Free Market's Marked Men, From The Niger Delta To The Amazon
By Amy Goodman, Contributor
Host, executive producer of Democracy Now!, NYT bestselling au...
Ken Saro-Wiwa's family and others just won a landmark settlement in U.S. federal court, ending a 13-year battle with Shell Oil. Alberto Pizango's ordeal is just beginning.
POLITICS
Bowoto v. Chevron: Approaching the Arguments
By Scott Gilmore, Contributor
Writer and law student
Why do police negotiators generally refuse to pay ransom for hostages? To do so would actually encourage more kidnappings by providing an incentive to would-be kidnappers.