Civil liability of corporate and non-state aiders and abettors of international terrorism as an evolving notion under international law

Global terrorist activities require financial economic support and a way to combat terrorism is to limit access to such funding. Terrorist financing is a global problem which is closely linked to money laundering and requires a well-co-ordinated, multilateral response through international bodies, such as the United Nations Security Council, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) of the OECD, as well as the use of civil litigation by victims against terrorist groups and their sponsors. The proactive role of corporations, such as banks (cf. the US Arab Bank case) and other entities (cf. SNCB Securities), as well as individuals play as aiders and abettors in financing international terrorism is well known and documented.1 This article aims to outline the evolving notion of corporate responsibility for human rights violations and acts of terrorism as a legal option for the individual victim of terrorism to achieve some form of justice. This article provides an overview of the current anti terrorism litigation under international and US law and introduces the idea of a new international court for the adjudication of such international torts.