Factory Bombing in Sudan: No Legal Recourse
On June 8, 2010, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled again against the owners of a pharmaceutical company that the United States destroyed after the Osama bin Laden bombing of two American embassies.
After an en-banc reconsideration, the court issued a detailed and wide-ranging decision in the matter El-Shifa Pharmaceutical Industries Co. et al. v. United States, 07-5174. The 27-page opinion confirms the dismissal of the complaint which originally sought compensation and later only an acknowledgment that the factory was not an Obama bin Laden-sponsored facility.
Ultimately, the dismissal is based on the political question doctrine but the entire opinion is worth reading. The same is true for Circuit Judge Kavanaugh's 15-page concurrence and the 3-page concurrence from Circuit Judge Ginsburg. -- Clemens Kochinke, partner, Berliner, Corcoran & Rowe, LLP, Washington, DC.
Tue, / Embassy Law Link