The Oral Argument in Cisco
Editor’s Note: This article also appears in Just Security. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Cisco Systems, Inc. v. Doe, a case testing whether claims for aiding and abetting human rights violations may be brought in federal court under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) and the Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA). The…
Continue ReadingWaco Judge Enjoins Litigation of U.S. Patents in Germany
Judge Alan D Albright (Western District of Texas) loves patent cases. Before his appointment as a district judge in 2018, he was a patent litigator. After his appointment, he “went on a media blitz, letting everyone know that his court would welcome patent litigation.” As detailed here, Judge Albright adopted standing orders that promised speedy…
Continue ReadingDispute Resolution at the ASIL Annual Meeting
For those attending the annual meeting of the American Society of International Law this week, TLB has compiled a list of panels and other events related to dispute resolution that may be of interest. Wednesday, April 23 The Role of Domestic Courts in Defending the Rule of Law, 2:00-3:15 (including TLB editor Bill Dodge). Enforcing…
Continue ReadingIs Nicolás Maduro Immune from Prosecution in U.S. Courts?
Nicolás Maduro was back in U.S. district court last week. According to news reports, the hearing focused on whether he can use Venezuelan government funds to pay his lawyers. Once that question is resolved, he is expected to raise several objections to the court’s jurisdiction to try him. Maduro may argue that the illegality of…
Continue ReadingHappy Birthday to TLB!
On March 28, 2022, Transnational Litigation Blog went live. Our very first post, titled Why Transnational Litigation?, listed the many reasons why we thought the world needed a blog devoted to the topic of transnational litigation. While it is unlikely that this post will ever achieve a status akin to the very first sketch on…
Continue ReadingExtraterritorial Application of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Congress passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) in 1998 to criminalize the circumvention of access controls to copyrighted works. Section 1201 provides: “No person shall circumvent a technological measure that effectively controls access to a work protected under this title.” Section 1203 allows a person injured by a violation of that provision to sue…
Continue ReadingFourth Circuit Affirms $42 Million Jury Verdict in Abu Ghraib Case
Editor’s Note: This article also appears in Just Security. Between October and December 2003, interrogators hired by CACI Premier Technology, Inc., along with members of the U.S. military, abused detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, subjecting them to sexual assault, forced nudity, dog threats and attacks, prolonged stress positions, and threats. In 2008, some…
Continue ReadingDistrict Court Grants Air Senegal Motion to Stay Parallel Suit
Sometimes you have to choose one court. In SASOF III (A2) Aviation Ireland DAC v. Air Senegal S.A., the plaintiffs, airline leasing companies, sued Air Senegal for non-payment of rent in Dakar, Senegal. Three months later, the plaintiffs filed a substantially similar suit in New York. On January 30, 2026, Magistrate Judge Stewart Aaron stayed…
Continue ReadingDistrict Court Orders Section 1782 Discovery for Peru Bribery Cases
28 U.S.C. § 1782 authorizes federal courts to order discovery for use in foreign or international tribunals. A recent decision in the Southern District of New York (SDNY), In re Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P., shows how § 1782 works, while raising interesting questions about discovery from banks and law firms. Highway Bribery In 2012, Metropolitan…
Continue ReadingChoice of Law in the American Courts in 2025
The thirty-ninth annual survey on choice of law in the American courts is now available on SSRN. The survey covers significant cases decided in 2025 on choice of law, party autonomy, extraterritoriality, international human rights, foreign sovereign immunity, adjudicative jurisdiction, and the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. This annual survey was admirably maintained by Symeon Symeonides for…
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