In the Media

In an April 17 Law360 article, Ben Haglund discusses the Supreme Court's April 16 decision in Kiobel et al. v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, which upheld the dismissal of a suit against the oil company alleging human rights violations. Ben says that since the case was first reargued last year "a wide spectrum of U.S. businesses with foreign operations have been 'waiting to exhale.' Those businesses -- mining, oil, pharmaceutical, and financial -- have been the subject of substantial Alien Tort Statute ("ATS") damage claims. In light of today's narrow ruling that the ATS does not have extraterritorial reach, those businesses will likely breathe a modest, if only temporary, sigh of relief. The narrow holding, the concurring opinions, and the submission of voluminous amicus briefs all suggest there will be continued efforts to bring claims of international law violations before U.S. Courts."