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The Traffic Light Theory of Sosa v. Alvarez-Machain

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 February 2017

Ralph G. Steinhardt*
Affiliation:
Oxford Programme in International Human Rights Law, The George Washington University Law School

Abstract

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Type
Customary International Law as Federal Law After Sosa v. Alvarez-Machain
Copyright
Copyright © American Society of International Law 2007

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References

1 Bradley, Curtis & Goldsmith, Jack, Customary International Law as Federal Common Law: A Critique of the Modern Position, 110 Harv. L. Rev. 815 (1997)CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

2 Jean v. Dorelien, 431 F.3d 776 (llth Cir. 2005).

3 175 U.S. 677 (1900).

4 Erie R.R. Co. v. Tompkins, 304 U.S. 64 (1938).

5 Taveras v. Taveraz, 477 F.3d 767 (6th Cir. 2007).

6 In re Agent Orange Product Liability Litigation, 373 F.Supp.2d 7 (E.D.N.Y. 2005).

7 El-Masri v. U.S., 479 F.3d 296 (4th Cir. 2007).

8 See, e.g., Doe v. Exxon Mobil Corp., 473 F.3d 345 (D.C. Cir. 2007); Joo v. Japan, 413 F.3d 45 (D.C. Cir. 2005).

9 See, e.g., Doe v. Saravia, 348 F.Supp.2d 1112 (E.D.Cal. 2004); Jean v. Dorelien, 431 F.3d 776, 778 (11th Cir. 2005); Chavez v. Carranza, 413 F.Supp.2d 891, 899 (W.D.Tenn. 2005); Doe v. Qi, 349 F.Supp.2d 1258 (N.D.Cal. 2004); Almog v. Arab Bank, PLC, 471 F.Supp.2d 257 (E.D.N.Y. 2007); Cabello v. Fernandez-Larios, 402 F.3d 1148 (11th Cir. 2005); Elmaghraby v. Ashcroft, _ F. Supp. 2d _ , 2005 Wl 2375202 (E.D.N.Y. 2005). Cf., enslavement and crimes against humanity from 1890 through 1915, Hereros ex rel. Riruako v. Deutsche Afrika-Linien Gmbh & Co., _ F.3d _, 2007 Wl 1066949 (3rd Cir. 2007). in order for torture to be actionable, it must be committed by state actors. Saleh v. Titan Corp., 436 F.Supp.2d 55 (D.D.C. 2006). Post-Sosa, the courts have split on the issue of whether the Torture Victim Protection Act occupies the field. Compare Enahoro v. Abubakar, 408 F.3d 877 (C.A.7th Cir. 2005) with Chavez v. Carranza, 413 F.Supp.2d 891, 899 (W.D.Tenn. 2005).

10 Sarei v. Rio Tinto, PLC,____F.3d___, 2007 Wl 1079901 (9th Cir. 2007).

11 Jogi v. Voges, 480 F.3d 822 (C.A.7 2007).

12 See, e.g., Sarei v. Rio Tinto, PLC, _ F.3d . 2007 Wl 1079901 (9th Cir. 2007); Almog v. Arab Bank, PLC, _ F.Supp.2d _, 2007 Wl 214433 (E.D.N.Y. 2007); Presbyterian Church of Sudan v. Talisman Energy, Inc., 453 F.Supp.2d 633 (S.D.N.Y., 2006); Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 456 F.Supp.2d 457 (S.D.N.Y. 2006); In re Sinaltrainal Litigation, 474 F.Supp.2d 1273 (S.D.Fla. 2006); Bowoto v. Chevron Corp., _ F. Supp. 2d__2006 Wl 2455752 (N.D.Cal. 2006); Aldana v. Del Monte Fresh Produce, N.A., Inc., 416 F.3d 1242 (11th Cir. 2005); Mujica v. Occidental Petroleum Corp., 381 F.Supp.2d 1164 (C.D.Cal. 2005); Corrie v. Caterpillar, Inc., 403 F.Supp.2d 1019 (W.D.Wash. 2005); Abdullahi v. Pfizer, Inc., _ F.Supp.2d _, 2005 Wl 1870811 (S.D.N.Y. 2005); In re South African Apartheid Litigation, 346 F.Supp.2d 538 (S.D.N.Y. 2004).

13 Koh, Harold Hongju, Is International Law Really State Law?, 111 Harv. L. Rev. 1824 (1998)CrossRefGoogle Scholar.