On March 12, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld a groundbreaking $42 million jury verdict against a Virginia-based government contractor, affirming the company’s liability for its role in the torture of three Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib prison during the Iraq War. This appellate win marks another significant milestone in the first-ever jury trial of claims brought by Abu Ghraib survivors and upholds the first jury verdict holding a government contractor liable for torture of detainees at Abu Ghraib. The victory comes after more than 17 years of litigation, which Patterson Belknap handled pro bono. It has included more than 15 attempts by the defendant to have the case dismissed, six appeals, and a mistrial following a deadlocked jury.

After invading Iraq in 2003, the United States government hired private contractor CACI Premier Technology, Inc. to provide interrogation services at Abu Ghraib, where thousands of Iraqi civilians were being detained. In April 2004, news outlets around the globe reported on the torture of Iraqis detained at the notorious prison. Investigations by the U.S. government determined that CACI employees had conspired with, and in some instances, engaged with U.S. soldiers to inflict the abuse.

In 2008, the firm's pro bono partner, the Center for Constitutional Rights, filed a lawsuit against CACI on behalf of three former detainees—a journalist named Salah Al-Ejaili, a fruit vendor named Asa’ad Al-Zuba’e, and a middle school principal named Suhail Al Shimari—who were subjected to torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment at Abu Ghraib at the hands of U.S. military personnel and military contractors. The case was brought under the Alien Tort Statute, a federal law from 1789 allowing foreign nationals to seek redress in U.S. courts for certain violations of international law.

Following a six-day trial in the fall of 2024, which featured in-person and remote testimony from the plaintiffs, U.S. Army generals, CACI employees, and former military personnel who were directly involved in torturing detainees, the jury found CACI liable for conspiracy to inflict torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment. The jury awarded each of Patterson Belknap’s three clients $3 million in compensatory damages and $11 million in punitive damages, for a total of $42 million in damages against CACI. This was close to the maximum punitive damages award that the court permitted the plaintiffs to request.

CACI’s appeal was subsequently argued before a three-judge panel of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in September 2025. Firm Partner Michael F. Buchanan and the firm’s co-counsel at the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) argued on behalf of the plaintiffs. The Fourth Circuit wholly rejected CACI’s attempt to invalidate the jury’s verdict and affirmed the judgment in favor of plaintiffs.     

In addition to Baher Azmy and Katherine Gallagher at CCR, the firm partnered with co-counsel Shereef Akeel, Charles B. Molster III, and Mohammed Alomari to represent the plaintiffs.

The firm’s lead lawyer, Michael F. Buchanan, was recognized as The American Lawyer’s “Litigator of the Week” for successfully securing the jury's verdict on appeal. The Patterson Belknap team’s pro bono work on the case has been widely recognized, including a previous feature in “Litigator of the Week.” Mr. Buchanan was recognized as an American Lawyer Attorney of the Year Finalist and spotlighted in The AmLaw Litigation Daily for the team’s role in securing the $42 million verdict against CACI.

The team was also featured in the November 15, 2024 and March 13, 2026 editions of Law360's "Legal Lions of the Week" column for their work on the trial and appeal.

To read the Fourth Circuit’s decision, click here. 

For additional press coverage from Bloomberg Law, The New York Times, Law360, and Common Dreams, click here, here, here, and here [a subscription may be required to view].