Acree v. Iraq,
U.S. Supreme Court, March 2005, Brief of Amici Curiae Center for
Justice & Accountability and International Law Scholars In Support
of Petition for Petitioners' Writ of Certiorari
Summary of issues presented in the brief:
CJA and amici international law scholars argued that under the Supreme
Court's ruling in Sosa v. Alvarez Machain, courts may recognize
private claims under federal common law for violations of international
norms that are universal, definable and obligatory. The prohibition
against torture is a universal, definable and obligatory norm that
falls within the Sosa framework and is therefore actionable
under federal common law. Torture claims may be brought not only through
the Alien Tort Statute, but also through the state sponsor of terrorism
exception in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act. Amici
argue that the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit erred in holding
that the FSIA did not permit the petitioners to bring torture claims.
Villeda-Aldana v. Fresh Del Monte
Produce, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, April
2004, Brief in Support of Plaintiffs’ Appeal of the District
Court’s Order Granting Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Subject
Matter Jurisdiction
Summary of issues presented in the brief:
Amici in this brief argued that plaintiffs’ allegations
of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and
arbitrary detention should not have been examined under a heightened
pleading standard at the trial level. Rather, the district court should
have analyzed these claims pursuant to the well-established international
and domestic definitions of these international law torts. This brief
discusses the international and domestic standards for alleging torture,
cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and arbitrary
detention.
Sosa
v. Alvarez-Machain, U.S. Supreme Court, March 2004, Brief
of CJA, the National Consortium of Torture Treatment Programs, and
Individual ATCA Plaintiffs' in Support of Respondents
Summary of issues presented in the brief:
The purpose of this brief was to offer the first-hand perspectives
of torture survivors, as well as the organizations and professionals
that assist them. The brief discusses the ATCA as the only judicial
remedy available for gross and systematic violations of human rights
including genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, slavery,
torture, religious persecution and other egregious atrocities. Amici
argue that ATCA suits promote the U.S. interest in holding perpetrators
of these violations accountable, and urge the Court to maintain the
opportunity for survivors to benefit from the effects on individuals
and communities that the judicial remedies under the ATCA afford.
Al-Odah v.
U.S. & Rasul v. Bush, U.S. Supreme Court, October
2003, Brief of CJA, Individual Advocates for the Independence
of the Judiciary in Emerging Democracies in Support of Petitioners
Summary of issues presented in the brief:
Amici in this brief urged the Supreme Court to exercise jurisdiction
over the claims asserted by Guantanamo Bay detainees. The brief states
that the United States’ tradition of a strong, independent judiciary
requires its courts to exercise jurisdiction over these claims. To
do otherwise would allow executive authority to go unchecked and would
set damaging precedent for emerging democracies that look to the United
States judiciary as a model of independence and non-partisanship.
Tachiona v. Mugabe v. United
States, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit,
July 2003, Brief of CJA and International Law & Human Rights
Scholars in Support of Plaintiffs’-Appellants’ Motion
to Dismiss
Summary of issues presented in the brief:
Amici challenged the United States’ executive branch’s
“extraordinary assertion” that it was vested with constitutionally
binding authority to determine the scope of immunity to which a foreign
head of state may be entitled. The brief argues that accepting the
United States’ claim of constitutional injury would effectively
foreclose judicial review of executive interpretations of the meaning
and scope of head-of-state immunity, and would deprive federal courts
of their proper constitutional role.
Sosa
v. Alvarez-Machain, U.S. Supreme Court, March 2004, Brief
of International Human Rights & Religious Organizations in Support
of Respondents
Summary of issues presented in the brief:
Amici argue that civil litigation under the ATCA is a vital
part of the global effort to address impunity and hold perpetrators
of egregious human rights abuses accountable for their actions. This
brief demonstrates that the modern application of the ATCA is fully
consistent with the practice of domestic legal systems around the
world and with international norms that permit states to hold perpetrators
of human rights abuses accountable for their actions.
Rich v. Ashcroft
Summary of issues presented in the brief:
Rich v. Ashcroft presented the question of whether the intentional
infliction of severe pain and suffering by government officials that
would otherwise be considered torture is exempted from the Torture
Convention’s definition of “torture” merely because
the victim is lawfully detained. Amici argue that a careful
reading of the Torture Convention, its implementing regulations and
the legislative materials concerning its ratification and implementation
shows that it forbids countries from torturing individuals who are
in lawful detention.
Shafiq Rasul,
et al. v. Bush, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District
of Columbia (Sept. 2002). Supported application of international norm
prohibiting arbitrary detention to Australian and British citizens
detained outside United States territory.
Ford, et al. v. Garcia, Vides Casanova,
U.S. Supreme Court (Oct. 2002). Supported petition for Supreme Court
review of decision of 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in case brought
by families of four churchwomen murdered in El Salvador in 1980. Issues
included allocation of burden of proving "effective control"
under command responsibility doctrine and application of standard
of review for invited error in jury instructions.
Hwang Geum Joo,
et al. v. Japan, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District
of Columbia (August 2002). Supported appeal from decision applying
sovereign immunity to government of Japan in connection with its trafficking
in "comfort women" during World War II.
Request to Inter
American Commission on Human Rights for Precautionary Measures
(Feb. 2002). Petitioned for precautionary measures regarding detention,
interrogation, and trial of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Doe, et al. v.
Unocal,
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Mar. 2001). Supported
plaintiffs in successful appeal, arguing that claims actionable under
ATCA are not limited to violations of jus cogens norms, and that international
law does not require "active participation" to establish
civil liability.
Beanal v. Freeport McMoran,
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (Nov. 1998). Supported
appeal from dismissal of plaintiffs' claim for cultural genocide and
genocide of indigenous groups surrounding Indonesian mine.
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