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AirplaneAisle-300x200However, there is a “longstanding principle of American law that legislation of Congress, unless a contrary intent appears, is meant to apply only within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States.” Morrison v. Nat’l Austl. Bank Ltd., 561 U.S. 247, 255, (2010)   “The presumption against extraterritoriality is only a presumption; it is overcome by clearly expressed Congressional intent for a statute to apply extraterritorially.” Weiss v. Nat’l Westminster Bank PLC, 768 F.3d 202, 211 (2d Cir. 2014)United States v. Vilar, 729 F.3d 62, 72 (2d Cir. 2013) (recognizing that presumption against extraterritoriality applies to criminal, as well as civil, statutes but that “it is beyond doubt that, as a general proposition, Congress has the authority to enforce its laws beyond the territorial boundaries of the United States” (internal quotations omitted)).  Because the presumption is only “a canon of statutory interpretation,” Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 133 S.Ct. 1659, 1664, 185 L.Ed.2d 671 (2013), whether Congress evinces an intent for the law to apply extraterritorially is likewise a question of statutory interpretation. See, e.g., United States v. MacAllister, 160 F.3d 1304, 1307 (11th Cir. 1998) (“Whether Congress has intended extraterritorial application is a question of statutory interpretation.”); United States v. Thomas, 893 F.2d 1066, 1068 (9th Cir. 1990) (“Whether 18 U.S.C. § 2251(a) applies to Thomas’ extraterritorial acts is, therefore, a question of statutory interpretation.”).

Airplane-300x202I was having a few flashbacks to civil procedure class in a recent Federal extradition case recently.  In law school, we had to learn the International Shoe standard of “minimum contacts which do not disturb traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice” according to International Shoe, whereby a state in America obtains jurisdiction over a citizen of another American state.  Like trial lawyers, the United States wants its jurisdiction to spread far and wide.  It is a principal of Admiralty law that the United States has jurisdiction oceanwide.   Congress has also passed several laws to extend Federal criminal law jurisdiction as broadly as possible around the world.

This jurisdiction extends to people onboard international air flights.  21 U.S.C. 959(c) states:

Possession, manufacture, or distribution by person on board aircraft

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