The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday on whether or not corporations can be held liable for complicity in human rights abuses outside the country.  The specific case on dock concerns the torture and execution of activists in Nigeria and the alleged involvement of oil giant Shell.

The Supreme Court case is Esther Kiobel versus the Royal Dutch Shell petroleum company.

Kiobel is the widow of one of nine anti-Shell protest leaders executed in Nigeria by the military in 1995.

Shell, headquartered in the Netherlands, and registered in Britain, is the fifth largest company in the world.

On the side of the plaintiffs, Jennifer Green, a professor of law from the University of Minnesota, explains Tuesday’s importance.

“The issue before the court is whether a corporation is basically immune for human rights abuses and we think the most significant principle is that corporations that are doing business in the United States are bound by U.S. law and U.S. law includes the prohibition of human rights violations. So when a corporation is complicit in those violations, it can be held liable under the Alien Tort Statute," she said.

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[Published in AidNews - Read the original article]