Alvarez v. Johns Hopkins University

This case concerns a 1940s U.S. government experiment that infected hundreds of Guatemalan people with syphilis as part of a nonconsensual and involuntary experiment regarding the effectiveness of penicillin, a new drug at the time.

The case Garcia v. Sebellius was originally brought against the U.S. government in 2011, but resulted in a court finding absolute immunity for officials’ acts taken within the parameters of their employment. Alvarez is the civil case that follows.

At issue is whether, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2018 Jesner v. Arab Bank decision, U.S. domestic corporations may be held liable under the Alien Tort Statute for international law violations perpetrated against non-U.S. citizens. In the present case, the violations alleged relate to nonconsensual medical experimentation on Guatemalan nationals during the 1940s and 50s.