The Center for Constitutional Rights filed amicus briefs in 2005, 2009, and 2015 in this consolidated case seeking civil liability from multinational corporations that are alleged to have aided and abetted the South African apartheid regime. The 2005 amicus brief, filed on behalf of public interest and religious organizations, addresses why apartheid must be found to constitute a violation of customary international law. The 2009 brief, filed on behalf of international and national human rights organizations, focuses primarily on the requirement under international law to ensure victims have access to a remedy and argues that the case should not be dismissed under the political question doctrine. The 2015 amicus brief that CCR joined with other human rights and labor organizations argues that the Supreme Court’s 2013 decision in Kiobel affirmed that corporations can be sued for human rights violations under the Alien Tort Statute, and that the claims in the case are governed by federal common law, which allows for corporate liability. CCR filed or joined these briefs as part of its efforts to strengthen mechanisms in U.S. courts for accountability for corporate human rights violations.

After years of litigation, the remaining claims are against two U.S. corporations, Ford Motor Company (Ford) and International Business Machines Corporation (IBM). Plaintiffs allege that these corporations provided substantial, purposeful assistance to the apartheid regime by supplying it with products and services to advance the commission of violations including apartheid, denationalization, torture, and extrajudicial killing.

These lawsuits were brought under the Alien Tort Statute, which allows foreign nationals to sue for egregious human rights violations in U.S. courts. CCR pioneered the Alien Tort Statute as a tool to pursue international human rights violations in U.S. courts and has used it for decades to seek justice and accountability for human rights victims across the globe.