Supreme Court to decide if corporations can be sued for human rights abuses

The case is the Obama administration and human rights advocates against Royal Dutch Shell.

The allegations are Royal Dutch Shell helped the Nigerian Government stop some oil related protests in the 1990's.

Arguments are that only individuals can be cited for human rights abuses.

The Administration says corporations can too.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Supreme Court will weigh next week whether corporations can be sued in the United States for suspected complicity in human rights abuses abroad, in a case being closely watched by businesses concerned about long and costly litigation.

The high court on Tuesday will consider the reach of a 1789 U.S. law that had been largely dormant until 1980, when human rights lawyers started using it, at first to sue foreign government officials. Then, over the next 20 years, the lawyers used the law to target multinational corporations.

The case before the court pits the Obama administration and human rights advocates against large companies and foreign governments over allegations that Royal Dutch Shell Plc helped Nigeria crush oil exploration protests in the 1990s.

Obama vs Royal Dutch Shell ?


The Supreme Court case is Esther Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co, No. 10-1491

Since corporations pushed to consider themselves 'a person' (link) it's only right we can treat them like a person and keep their actions towards others in check.

Well, as El1jah says, if you can sue and/or prosecute a single person for human rights abuses, corporations should be fair game now as well.

reply to post by xuenchen


This is very fertile ground, I must say! Governments ARE corporations. So let's say that you're just some run-of-the-mill guy whose government has disenfranchised him by issuing employment quotas. I can see a lot of lawsuits rearing their ugly heads and I think they would be well played, and defensible ;-)

There's only one problem, everyone (taxpayers) has to pay for the governments mistakes, but they have to do that anyway. Or do they?

Cheers - Dave

When corporations where granted individual rights as an entity it did open a messy can of worms. There are specific rights and responsibilities that do need to be established between the human and corporate entities.