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In Smith v. United States, supra at 198, the issue was
“whether the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), 28 U.S.C. ��
1346(b), 1402(b), 2401(b), 2671-2680 (1998 ed. and Supp. II),
applies to tortious acts or omissions occurring in Antarctica, a
sovereignless region without civil tort law of its own.” The
plaintiff, Mrs. Smith, brought a wrongful-death action against
the United States under the FTCA for the death of her husband,
Mr. Smith. At the time of his death, Mr. Smith was employed as a
carpenter at McMurdo Station on Ross Island, Antarctica, for a
construction company under contract to the NSF, the same agency
that had a contract with Raytheon in the instant case. Mr. Smith
died after falling into a crevasse in Antarctica.
The Supreme Court held that Antarctica is a foreign country
for purposes of the FTCA. Id. at 201-202. The Supreme Court
reasoned that Mrs. Smith’s claim was barred by the foreign-
country exception of the FTCA under 28 U.S.C. sec. 2680(k), which
precludes the exercise of jurisdiction over “any claim arising in
a foreign country.” The Court based its conclusion on the
particular language of the FTCA. Id. at 201-205.
In Smith v. Raytheon Co., supra, the U.S. District Court for
the District of Massachusetts held that Antarctica is a foreign
country for purposes of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The
plaintiffs claimed that the FLSA required their employer,
Raytheon, which had entered into a contract with the NSF to
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