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What is the significance of the Mohamad v.
Palestinian Authority case?
The Mohamad v.
Palestinian Authority case was the first time the Supreme Court interpreted the scope of liability under the Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA).
The TVPA was enacted in 1991 to provide a civil cause of action for victims of torture and extrajudicial killing committed under actual or apparent authority of a foreign nation.
The key issue in the case was whether the term "individual" in the TVPA encompasses only natural persons or also includes organizations like the Palestinian Authority and the PLO.
The district court initially dismissed the case, concluding the TVPA permits actions against natural persons only, not organizations.
In a unanimous 9-0 decision, the Supreme Court affirmed the district court's ruling, holding that the TVPA's use of "individual" refers only to natural persons, not organizations.
The Court reasoned that when Congress wants to impose liability on an organization, it knows how to do so explicitly, as it did in other statutes like the Alien Tort Statute.
This decision closed a potential avenue for holding non-state organizations accountable for torture and extrajudicial killings under the TVPA.
The case highlighted the difficulty in seeking redress for human rights abuses committed by non-state actors through the U.S.
legal system.
Legal scholars debated whether the Court's narrow interpretation of "individual" was consistent with the TVPA's purpose of providing a civil remedy for torture victims.
The ruling in Mohamad v.
Palestinian Authority contrasted with the Court's earlier decision in Sosa v.
Alvarez-Machain, which allowed certain human rights claims against non-state actors under the Alien Tort Statute.
The case drew attention to the challenges in crafting legislation that can effectively hold both state and non-state actors accountable for egregious human rights violations.
Legal experts argued the decision could make it more difficult for U.S.
courts to serve as a forum for litigating international human rights abuses.
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