A Unified Approach to Extraterritoriality

Authors

Anthony J. Colangelo, Southern Methodist University, Dedman School of LawFollow

Abstract

This Article develops a unified approach to extraterritoriality. It uses the source of lawmaking authority behind a statute to discern the proper canon for construing that statute’s geographic reach and to evaluate whether application of the statute violates due process.

The approach holds important implications for a variety of high-stakes issues with which courts are presently wrestling, including: the proper role of the presumption against extraterritorial application of U.S. law, whether international law or federal common law should supply the rule of decision in Alien Tort Statute cases, the scope of U.S. jurisdiction over terrorism offenses, and the viability of due process objections to the application of U.S. law abroad.

Publication Title

Virginia Law Review

Document Type

Article

Keywords

Extraterritorial Jurisdiction, unified extraterritoriality

Recommended Citation

Anthony J. Colangelo, A Unified Approach to Extraterritoriality, 97 Va. L. Rev. 1019 (2011)