Supreme Court Reins In Activist Lawsuits, Major Win for U.S. Businesses https://conservativebrief.com/supreme-court-activist-102293/?utm_source=CB&utm_medium=258 The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday delivered a landmark victory for American companies and constitutional limits on judicial power. The nation’s highest court ruled 6-3 in Cisco Systems, Inc. v. Doe (24-856) that neither the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) nor the Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA) allows private plaintiffs to sue for aiding and abetting alleged violations of international law. The ruling bolsters the Trump administration’s America First agenda by restoring proper roles: Congress and the executive handle foreign policy and create remedies when needed, while courts stick to enforcing enacted law. It protects U.S. technological leadership, deters forum-shopping by overseas claimants, and reaffirms that the Constitution does not empower judges to conduct foreign relations through private lawsuits. In an age of global competition and aggressive adversaries like Communist China, this is a commonsense defense of American sovereignty and enterprise. The decision slams the door on expansive, judge-made lawsuits that have long threatened U.S. businesses operating abroad. Justice Amy Coney Barrett authored the majority opinion, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh. “Today, we close the door that Sosa cracked and hold that courts may not create new causes of action for violations of international norms,” Barrett wrote. “We also hold that the Torture Victim Protection Act of 1991, which contains an express cause of action, does not provide for aiding-and-abetting liability,” Barrett added. The case involved claims by unnamed Falun Gong practitioners alleging Cisco Systems and its executives aided Chinese government persecution by selling networking equipment used in surveillance.