WASHINGTON — Technology company Cisco appears headed for victory at the Supreme Court, where justices on Tuesday signaled they would likely dismiss a legal challenge brought by practitioners of the Falun Gong spiritual practice.
The high court is examining a lower court decision that permitted the case against Cisco to move forward in American courts.
Cisco maintains it should not face accountability under two distinct federal statutes for allegedly assisting in human rights abuses. These laws include the centuries-old Alien Tort Statute and the Torture Victim Protection Act, which Congress passed in 1991.
The court’s conservative wing appeared focused on determining how sweeping their ruling for Cisco should be and whether federal judges are permitting too many comparable cases to advance. Justice Neil Gorsuch questioned at one point whether the courthouse entrance lacks proper security.
Over recent years, both the Supreme Court and White House administrations from both political parties have expressed doubt about litigation attempting to use American judicial venues to address foreign government actions, particularly those occurring overseas. To counter this reluctance, Falun Gong practitioners contend that significant portions of Cisco’s China-related operations occurred on American soil.
An Associated Press examination conducted last year revealed that American technology firms largely created China’s monitoring infrastructure, with encouragement from both Republican and Democratic governments, despite warnings from advocates that such systems were suppressing opposition, targeting religious communities, and persecuting ethnic minorities.
Leaked documents from 2008 revealed Cisco viewed China’s “Golden Shield” internet restriction program as a business opportunity. The corporation referenced a Chinese official who labeled Falun Gong an “evil cult.” A Cisco presentation from that period, examined by AP, claimed its systems could detect more than 90% of Falun Gong content online.
Additional presentations reviewed by AP demonstrate that Cisco characterized Falun Gong materials as dangerous and developed a nationwide tracking system to monitor practitioners. In 2011, Falun Gong members filed suit against Cisco, claiming the company customized technology for Beijing while understanding it would be used to locate, arrest, and abuse believers.
Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson appeared most inclined to permit the case to proceed.
Cisco served as a cooperative ally with Chinese authorities, Sotomayor stated. “It knew that those people will be tortured,” she said.
Cisco attorney Kannon Shanmugam rejected this characterization. “Cisco vigorously disputes those allegations,” Shanmugam informed the justices.
The court’s ruling is anticipated in late June.
