Abstract: The Alien Tort Statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1350, stands as one of the most unique laws of the United States. It provides that the “district courts shall have original jurisdiction of any civil action by an alien for a tort only, committed in violation of the law of nations or a treaty of the United States.” It has been referred to in the past by Judge Henry Friendly as a “kind of legal Lohengrin; although it has been with us since the first Judiciary Act, § 9, 1 Stat. 73, 77 (1789), no one seems to know whence it came.” The legal “Lohengrin” of the Alien Tort Statute has been extended by courts to provide jurisdiction over tort claims covering the violations of a number of norms of international law – for example, the prohibition against torture, the prohibition against genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, the prohibition against racial discrimination, and terrorism. However, not all torts have been found by courts to be actionable under the Alien Tort Statute, including fraud, conversion conspiracy to murder, and the “right to life” and “right to health.” With the advent of an increased number of cases filed involving the Alien Tort Statute, Alien Tort Statute cases which relate to religious concerns generally are likely to become more common. This Article, following a brief introduction of the Alien Tort Statute, will summarize and examine several developments concerning religion and the Alien Tort Statute, most prominently the recent injection of the Alien Tort Statute into the crisis in the United States concerning sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests.
Publication Year: 2011
Publication Date: 2011-04-04
Language: en
Type: article
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