US Supreme Court limits corporate human rights liability under the Alien Tort Statute, ruling for tech giant Cisco Systems.
WASHINGTON— In a landmark decision sharply curtailing the reach of transnational human rights litigation across the federal judiciary,the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that federal courts lack the constitutional authority to create new private causes of action under the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) and held that the Torture Victim Protection Act of 1991 (TVPA) does not subject corporate entities or peripheral actors to civil aiding-and-abetting liability for abuses committed on foreign soil.
The 6–3 ruling in Cisco Systems, Inc. v. Doe (No. 24-856),handed down on June 23, 2026,delivers a defining victory to American multinational corporations, bringing a dramatic conclusion to four decades of judicial expansion that permitted foreign citizens to haul domestic enterprises into American courtrooms over alleged secondary complicity in human rights violations carried out by authoritarian regimes.