Overview

Courts without Borders is the first book to examine the politics of judicial extraterritoriality, with a focus on the world's chief practitioner: the United States. For much of the post-World War II era, the United States has been a frequent yet selective regulator of activities outside its territory, and US federal courts are often on the front line in deciding the extraterritorial reach of US law. At stake in these jurisdiction battles is the ability to bring the regulatory power of the United States to bear on transnational disputes in ways that other states frequently dislike both in principle and in practice. This volume proposes a general theory of domestic court behavior to explain variation in extraterritorial enforcement of US law, emphasizing how the strategic behavior of private actors is important to mobilizing courts and in directing their activities.

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9781316502075

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Reviews

'Courts without Borders makes sense of puzzling patterns in US courts' decisions to assert domestic law internationally. Tonya L. Putnam shows that courts avoid doing so when it would undercut the public policy purposes the law is intended to serve and when rights at the core of American political identity are threatened. Her book is a masterful and compelling account of the politics and principles that support and restrain the long arm of American law overseas.' Beth Simmons, Clarence Dillon Professor of International Affairs, Harvard University, Massachusetts 'This is an important study of critical but understudied questions - when, how, and why do US courts bring US law to bear on persons and conduct outside US territory and how do these decisions affect international outcomes? Putnam's book is lucid, compelling, and extraordinarily well-grounded in empirical details. This is one of the best books to appear on issues of transnational law and governance in recent years.' Eric Voeten, Peter F. Krogh Associate Professor of Geopolitics and Global Justice, Georgetown University, Washington DC 'For much of the post-World War II era, the United States has been a frequent yet selective regulator of activities outside its territory, and US federal courts are often on the front line in deciding the extraterritorial reach of US law. At stake in these jurisdiction battles is the ability to bring the regulatory power of the United States to bear on transnational disputes in ways that other states frequently dislike in both principle and practice. Putnam proposes a general theory of domestic court behavior to explain variation in extraterritorial enforcement of US law, emphasizing how the strategic behavior of private actors is important to mobilizing courts and in directing their activities.' Law and Social Inquiry

Author Information

Tonya L. Putnam is Associate Professor of Political Science at Columbia University, New York. She is a lawyer with experience in international public law litigation, and a member of the California State Bar.

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