24 April 2012

MEMBER PUBLICATION: Stigall on International Law and Limitations on the Exercise of Extraterritorial Jurisdiction in US Domestic Law

Dan E Stigall (US Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs),

 International Law and Limitations on the Exercise of Extraterritorial Jurisdiction in US Domestic Law


Abstract:
 
With the dramatic rise in the frequency and scope of transnational criminal activity and the modern phenomenon of globalization, the interrelationship between international law and U.S. domestic law has come into sharper focus. From issues relating to international terrorism to more banal matters with distinct international dimensions, national courts in the modern era find themselves deciding cases with significant international elements and which have the potential to impact relations between sovereigns on the international plane. One area which is implicated across a broad range of legal topics and which has a natural propensity to affect international relations is the assertion of extraterritorial jurisdiction. This is due to the inherently conflict-generative nature of extraterritoriality.