Nestlé USA, Inc. v. Doe
Issues
Under the Alien Tort Statute, can domestic corporations be held liable for aiding and abetting human rights abuses—specifically, child slavery—in a foreign country, when the aiding and abetting allegedly occurred on U.S. soil?
This case asks the Court to determine whether domestic corporations may be held liable for aiding and abetting human rights violations committed in foreign countries. Petitioners Nestlé and Cargill contracted for exclusive buyer-seller contracts with cocoa plantations on the Ivory Coast; Respondents John Doe et. al. were child slaves on those farms. John Doe alleges that Nestlé and Cargill aided and abetted the farmers from headquarters in the United States by providing monetary support while aware of the widespread use of child slavery on those farms, thus making them liable under the Alien Tort Statute. Nestlé and Cargill counter that the harm inflicted upon John Doe occurred exclusively on foreign soil, making the case impermissibly extraterritorial; furthermore, they argue recent Court cases determined that corporations were immune from liability under the Alien Tort Statute. The Court’s decision in this case will implicate political questions of foreign policy and foreign affairs, corporate incentives to invest in developing countries, and the United States’ support for human rights.
Questions as Framed for the Court by the Parties
(1) Whether an aiding and abetting claim against a domestic corporation brought under the Alien Tort Statute may overcome the extraterritoriality bar where the claim is based on allegations of general corporate activity in the United States and where the plaintiffs cannot trace the alleged harms, which occurred abroad at the hands of unidentified foreign actors, to that activity; and (2) whether the judiciary has the authority under the Alien Tort Statute to impose liability on domestic corporations.
In the Ivory Coast, cocoa plantations utilize child slaves to produce cheap cocoa. Doe I v.
Written by
Edited by
The authors would like to thank Professor Muna Ndulo for his guidance and insights into this case. The authors would like to thank Professor Muna Ndulo for his guidance and insights into this case.
Additional Resources
- Jess Bavin, Supreme Court to Decide Federal Courts Authority Over Claims from Overseas Atrocities, Wall Street Journal (July 2, 2020).
- William S. Dodge, Trump Administration Reverses Position on Corporate Liability Under Alien Tort Statute, Just Security (June 1, 2020).
- Greg Stohr, Supreme Court Will Consider New Curbs on Human-Rights Lawsuits, Bloomberg (July, 2, 2020).