Alien Tort Claims and the Status of Customary International Law

Bibliographic Data

ID9547002
AuthorsCarlos Manuel Vázquez (Council of Science Editors, corresponding author)
Year2012
Volume106
Issue3
Pages531-546
Publication date2012-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Journal of International Law (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-9300 • E-ISSN: 2161-7953
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.5305/amerjintelaw.106.3.0531
OpenAlexW1575296544
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited6

Much of the recent debate about the status of customary international law in the U.S. legal system has revolved around the alien tort provision of the Judiciary Act of 1789, currently section 1350 of Title 28. In Filártiga v. Peña-Irala , the decision that launched modern human rights litigation in the United States, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit relied on the view that customary international law has the status of federal common law in upholding section 1350’s grant of federal jurisdiction over a suit between aliens. The court’s position that customary international law was federal law was the prevailing view at the time—a view that has subsequently been dubbed the “modern position.” It was the view set forth in the black letter of the Restatement (Third) of Foreign Relations Law. Filártiga triggered a revisionist challenge to the modern position, with revisionists arguing that customary international law has the status of federal law only if given that status through statute or treaty, or perhaps through sole executive action; in the absence of such incorporation, customary international law has, at best, the status of State law in our legal system

Alien Tort Statute · Common law · Customary international law · Federal common law · Human rights · International law · Jurisdiction · Liability · Municipal law · Political science · Public international law · Statute · Tort · Treaty · Corporate Law and Human Rights · International Law and Aviation · International Law and Human Rights · Law

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