July, 14 2011, 01:27pm EDT

Supreme Court Urged to Review Ruling that Shields Corporations from Human Rights Suits
Corporations Must Not Be Granted Immunity for Egregious Conduct Argue International Human Rights Groups and Experts
WASHINGTON
A group of international human rights organizations filed an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court in the case of Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum in which they urge the Court to review an appeals court finding that corporations cannot be held liable for international human rights violations in U.S. courts.
Kiobel is a lawsuit that was filed in 2002 by members of the Ogoni community in Nigeria for serious human rights violations suffered in the 1990s. Plaintiffs alleged that Royal Dutch Shell aided and abetted and were otherwise complicit in violations including extrajudicial killing, arbitrary arrest and detention, and crimes against humanity. It is a companion case to Wiwa v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, which was settled by ten separate plaintiffs in 2009 who were represented by the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and others.
Kiobel was brought under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS), a law that since 1980 has been hailed as a powerful tool for victims of human rights abuses to hold their tormentors accountable for violations of international law. Since the mid-1990s, ATS suits, which previously had been brought against individuals, began being filed against corporations.
Last September, a split panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held that the statute does not apply to corporations, but only to individuals. This decision was at odds with rulings from the Eleventh Circuit, and is now also at odds with decisions from the Seventh Circuit and the District of Columbia Circuit, which in the last week ruled that corporations can be held liable under the ATS. In the D.C. case, the majority held that corporations, in this case, EXXON Mobil for operations in Indonesia, are not immune "for torts based on heinous conduct allegedly committed by its agents in violation of the law of nations."
The international human rights groups, led by CCR, which litigated the groundbreaking case Filartiga v. Pena-Irala that resurrected the ATS, focus their brief on a comparative look at how legal systems from around the world address the issue of corporate legal liability. Their analysis reveals that while the form of liability may differ between systems, there exists a universal recognition - a general principle of law - that with corporate personhood comes corporate legal responsibility.
"Corporations, like individuals, cannot and should not expect the benefits of legal rights without any obligation to act within the bounds of the law," said Katherine Gallagher, a Senior Staff Attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights. "This is a general principle of law that is respected in legal systems worldwide. The Supreme Court is being called upon to make it clear that the United States will not become an outlier and an enabler of corporate immunity, especially in cases involving the most egregious acts. The Second Circuit's decision undermines fundamental concepts of accountability and leaves victims of the most serious human rights violations without a remedy."
CCR is joined in its brief by organizations including the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights, the International Association of Democratic Lawyers, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), and international scholars Olivier De Schutter and Florian Jessberger. Their brief is one of five amicus briefs to be filed in support of the petitioners' application for the Supreme Court to review the Second Circuit's decision.
The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. CCR is committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.
(212) 614-6464LATEST NEWS
Sen. Dianne Feinstein Dies at 90
California's longest-serving senator suffered a string of health crises in recent months, sparking concerns about her fitness for office and calls for her resignation.
Sep 29, 2023
Democratic U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, California's longest-serving senator, has died at 90.
In recent months, Feinstein faced calls from fellow Democrats to step aside as she suffered a string of health crises that forced her to miss dozens of votes and compromised her party's ability to advance judicial nominees.
As the Associated Pressreported, "One of Feinstein's most significant legislative accomplishments was early in her career, when the Senate approved her amendment to ban manufacturing and sales of certain types of assault weapons as part of a crime bill that President Bill Clinton signed into law in 1994."
The ban expired in 2004, and a Feinstein-led attempt to renew it in the wake of the Sandy Hook massacre was unsuccessful.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said earlier this month that he would make an "interim appointment" to fill Feinstein's seat in the case of a vacancy.
Three prominent Democrats—Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter, and Adam Schiff—are running for the seat in 2024. Newsom said he would not appoint any of them on an interim basis.
In a statement following news of Feinstein's death, Newsom said she "was many things—a powerful, trailblazing U.S. senator; an early voice for gun control; a leader in times of tragedy and chaos."
"But to me," he added, "she was a dear friend, a lifelong mentor, and a role model not only for me, but to my wife and daughters for what a powerful, effective leader looks like."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Dems Slam GOP for Trying to Force 'Anti-Immigrant Agenda' Into Government Funding Bill
"House Republicans cannot move their extreme, cruel, unworkable anti-immigrant agenda through the regular legislative process, so they're trying to make an end-run around Congress and hold the American people hostage to force it into law."
Sep 29, 2023
The Democratic chairs of leading congressional caucuses said late Thursday that they oppose any last-minute effort to cram immigration policy changes into government funding legislation as House and Senate Republicans consider doing just that, with a shutdown less than 48 hours away.
"It is not appropriate to establish new immigration and border policy in a bill to keep the government funded," the chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, and Congressional Black Caucus said in a joint statement.
"House Republicans cannot move their extreme, cruel, unworkable anti-immigrant agenda through the regular legislative process, so they're trying to make an end-run around Congress and hold the American people hostage to force it into law," they continued. "Even Minority Leader Senator McConnell has said, 'Shutting down the government isn't an effective way to make a point.' We couldn't agree more."
The Democrats' statement came in the wake of news that members of the House and Senate—with the reported backing of some Democrats in the upper chamber—are discussing the possible addition of immigration and border measures to a short-term government funding bill in a bid to win the votes of intransigent House Republicans.
Earlier this week, as the chaos-ridden House failed to make progress, the Senate advanced a legislative vehicle for a continuing resolution that would keep the government through November 17—an attempt to buy time for both chambers to approve full-year funding measures.
Citing two unnamed Republican aides, The Washington Postreported that "by Thursday evening, Senate Republicans were considering an amendment to the continuing resolution that would include $6 billion in funding for border security but no new immigration policy."
According to the Post, Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) "appeared to be involved in the talks."
On Friday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.)—who is facing a potential removal plot by far-right House Republicans—is expected to put on the floor a Republican stopgap funding measure that includes major federal spending cuts and border policies.
The Wall Street Journalreported late Thursday that the GOP package includes changes that "House lawmakers passed earlier this year in a broader bill that orders construction to resume on the Trump administration's border wall." That bill was dead on arrival in the Senate.
"The border measures, which have broad backing in the conference, would also make it harder for people to remain in the U.S. under the protection of asylum rules," the Journal noted.
House Republicans' latest effort to move ahead with a short-term funding package will come after they passed several appropriations bills Thursday night, including measures to fund the Pentagon and State Department.
But the House voted down the GOP-authored agriculture appropriations bill, which included steep cuts to food aid for low-income families and a rollback of abortion pill access.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said in a statement that lawmakers "should have spent this week working together to prevent the government from shutting down."
"Instead, we spent it watching House Republicans in chaos, loading up their 2024 funding bills with deeper cuts and dangerous policies that harm the economy and raise the cost of living for American families," said DeLauro. "Another day of Republican dysfunction, two days until they shut the government down."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Markey, Bowman Unveil $1.6 Trillion Green New Deal for Public Schools
"Let's build a green future where every student can learn and thrive," said Sen. Ed Markey while introducing the proposed legislation.
Sep 28, 2023
Climate and education advocates on Thursday cheered the introduction in the U.S. Congress by Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Jamaal Bowman of the Green New Deal for Public Schools Act, which the lawmakers said would invest $1.6 trillion to transform the nation's education system while "creating 1.3 million jobs and eliminating 78 million metric tons of carbon emissions over 10 years."
A statement promoting the proposed legislation says it would "fund green upgrades that remove all health harms and carbon pollution fromevery public school in the nation while taking on environmental and racial inequities."
"It will unleash the potential of safe and inspiring public education for 50 million K-12 students in every neighborhood across the country," the statement added. "And, it willadd essential staff to vulnerable schools, create 1.3 million good-paying jobs annually, and reduce carbon emissions by 78 millionmetric tons each year—that's the same as taking 17 million gas-powered cars off the road!"
The measure is currently co-sponsored by 74 House lawmakers and is endorsed by advocacy groups including the Sunrise Movement; American Federation of Teachers; Gen Z for Change; Working Families Party; Sierra Club; Institute for Policy Studies; GreenLatinos; March for Our Lives; Progressive Democrats of America; and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees.
"The United States of America should have the best public education system in the world—our students, parents, teachers, staff, and administrators are doing their part, but Congress is failing them at every turn," Markey (D-Mass.) said in a statement. "School buildings are falling apart, educators and staff are creating makeshift air conditioners from window units, aging infrastructure is making our kids and our planet sick—it's a disgrace."
"The Green New Deal for Public Schools Act delivers climate justice, health justice, social justice, economic justice, and racial justice so that students—no matter their zip code—can learn in a safe and healthy environment, and one that is contributing to a healthier planet for the next generation," Markey added. "It is long past due for the United States to invest in schools what schools invest in us."
Bowman (D-N.Y.)—the founder and former principal of the Cornerstone Academy for Social Action, a public middle school in the Bronx—said that "it's time to revolutionize our public schools."
"As we face the devastating impacts of the climate crisis and confront the harms of underinvestment in redlined communities and inequities in our education system, we must center our kids and their futures," he asserted. "Education can change the world."
Bowman continued:
Schools should be the centers of our communities, places of joy and self-discovery where students feel safe to grow, thrive, and explore their passions and curiosity. Right now, they're crumbling, leaving our students, educators, and communities behind. We must take advantage of this moment by putting them first and facing the climate crisis head-on with bold investments in our schools focused on environmental, educational, economic, and racial equity.
"It's time for us to provide our kids with the resources they need to unlock their brilliance and have a livable planet by passing the Green New Deal for Public Schools Act and making urgent and necessary investments to revitalize our public education system," Bowman added.
The proposed legislation comes three days after students at more than 50 high schools across the U.S.—led by the Sunrise Movement—launched the Green New Deals for Schools campaign. The campaign is demanding that education officials provide school buildings powered by renewable energy; free, healthy, local, and sustainable meals; support for finding well-paying, unionized green careers; plans for extreme weather events; and instruction about the climate crisis.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular
Independent, nonprofit journalism needs your help.
Please Pitch In
Today!
Today!