Beyond the Alien Tort Claims Act: Alternative Approaches to Attributing Liability to Corporations for Extraterritorial Abuses

Abstract

Whereas in the past a corporation's sole responsibility was to maximize profits, it is currently accepted that multinational corporations (MNCs) should be held accountable for human rights abuses. However, there is currently no mechanism that effectively holds MNC's accountable for violations. A number of alleged victims of corporate abuse have tried litigating claims in U.S. courts, most under the Alien Tort Claims Act (ACTA). However, these attempts have been mostly unsuccessful, and the ACTA's effectiveness in holding MNC's accountable has been severely weakened by the Supreme Court's decision in Sosa v. Alvarez as well as by executive orders. This paper examines solutions to this problem, first domestically, in the courts of specific countries, and then internationally, such as in the International Criminal Court and various other specialized tribunals.

Keywords: human rights, corporations, alien tort claims act