Washington, D.C. — In federal district court in the District of Columbia, several illegal aliens have sued to reverse the denial of their asylum claims and their expedited removal from this country, claiming that international law gives them the right to enter the United States. The IRLI has filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case to explain that only American law matters in American courts; foreign law does not.
The aliens argue that American law should be interpreted to make it consistent with customary international law and treaties that Congress has never implemented. But the IRLI demonstrates that American courts do not and should not give weight to such foreign sources. Rather, American law, enacted by the elected representatives of the American people, is the supreme law of the land under the Constitution. When an international custom or non-binding treaty conflicts with American law, so much worse for the custom or treaty: American courts have no authority to enforce foreign legal standards.
IRLI also addresses the aliens’ argument that “all non-citizens” who touch American soil “generally have the right to apply for asylum.” In fact, not everyone can apply for asylum in he United States. … even if foreign bodies such as the United Nations disagree. …
www.irli.org/single-post/2019/09/04/Keep-International-Law-Out-of-American-Courts