Transnational Civil Litigation

Discussion - 2 units. As a result of the increasingly transnational nature of human and corporate activity, civil litigation in U.S. courts often involves a foreign element—for example, one of the parties may be a foreign national, or the case may involve some conduct that happened outside the United States. Litigation like this raises questions about the limits of a court’s authority (and power) to adjudicate matters that are not purely domestic. In addition, cases with international elements can often be brought in more than one country’s courts. This raises interesting questions of comparative law (for instance, why might a plaintiff prefer to sue in the United States than elsewhere?), as well as the possibility of parallel litigation, where multiple courts seek to adjudicate the same matter. Finally, large-scale transnational litigation can be used to enhance the accountability of corporations for the impacts of their global operations, as in the case of human rights litigation or climate litigation. This course will examine these various dimensions of transnational litigation.

Prerequisite: 203 Civil Procedure

Final Assessment: Take-home exam
Grading Mode: Letter Grading