The Clearing House Association sent a letter to the Treasury urging it to recommend to the Solicitor General that the U.S Government file a brief in U.S. Supreme Court case Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum taking the position that the Alien Tort Statute does not provide a private cause of action for violations of international law that occur in foreign countries. On April 17, the U.S. Supreme Court decided the case of Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum, holding that the Alien Tort Statute does not provide authority for U.S. courts to entertain suits for violations of international law that occur in other countries.