The Supreme Court has decided to address a prolonged legal conflict concerning the ability of American victims—those injured or killed in terrorism incidents in the Middle East—to sue Palestinian authorities in U.S. courts. This matter stems from a series of court rulings made in New York, where the federal appeals court consistently favored the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA), despite congressional attempts to permit such lawsuits.
In its most recent decision last year, the appeals court invalidated a law instituted in 2019 which aimed to facilitate the prosecution of these claims. The Supreme Court typically reviews cases where lower courts have overturned federal legislation, making this a significant situation for the justices to contend with.
The core issue confronting the Supreme Court is whether the aforementioned 2019 legislation is unconstitutional, as determined by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, due to its potential infringement on the rights to fair legal proceedings for the PLO and PA. Proceedings for this case are expected to commence in the spring. Both the victims and the current administration have requested the Supreme Court’s intervention in this matter.
The incidents in question date back to the early 2000s, resulting in 33 fatalities and countless injuries, as well as a separate attack in 2018 where a U.S.-born settler was fatally stabbed by a Palestinian outside a West Bank shopping center. Families of those affected argue that Palestinian officials either directly participated in these attacks or incited them.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals first dismissed the victims’ claims in 2016, overturning a jury award of $654 million. The court concluded that U.S. courts do not have jurisdiction to hear lawsuits from foreign-based entities regarding indiscriminate attacks that were not specifically targeting the United States.
The plaintiffs filed their cases under the Anti-Terrorism Act, which was enacted in 1992 to provide a legal channel for victims of international terrorism, particularly in response to the murder of American Leon Klinghoffer during a terrorist hijacking in 1985. Initially, a jury held the PLO and PA accountable for six separate attacks, granting $218 million in damages, which was automatically tripled mandated by the law.
After the Supreme Court denied the victims’ request for an appeal in 2018, Congress attempted to clarify the law, reinforcing its commitment to ensuring access to justice for those impacted by such acts of violence.
