Courts & Litigation

Just Security’s expert authors offer analysis and informational resources on key litigation impacting national security, rights, democracy, and the rule of law. Our content spans domestic and international litigation, from cases at the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court, and other international and regional tribunals, to those in U.S. courts involving executive branch actions, transnational litigation, and more.

× Clear Filters
2,932 Articles
U.S. Attorney General William Barr leans his head sideways onto his hand as he testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee May 1, 2019 in Washington, DC.

Barr and Congress: Is the Focus on Criminality Too Narrow?–Five Experts Weigh In

The Senate Judiciary Committee’s questioning of Attorney General William Barr yesterday raises the question of whether Congress, in responding to the findings in Special Counsel…
Attorney General nominee William Barr (C) is sworn in prior to testifying at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee January 15, 2019 in Washington, DC.

Barr to Senate: President is Not Immune from Prosecutor Declaration of Indictable Offense

"Mueller may now be able to say on the record whether he believes President Donald Trump committed the crime of obstruction."
President John F. Kennedy's murderer Lee Harvey Oswald during a press conference after his arrest in Dallas.

JFK Records Suit Tests CIA Secrecy on Assassination

Morley v. CIA has wound its way through the courts for 16 years, and revealed some juicy nuggets along the way. The plaintiff, who is the biographer of two top CIA operations officers,…
Activists Luis Nolasco, Aki Rose and Josh Rabb hold placards reading "Secure Phones Saves Lives" while gathered in front of the US District Court in Riverside, California, on March 22, 2016, where the Apple v FBI trial was due to take place before its sudden postponement. A television monitor displays the messages of some 20,000 people who have signed an online petition agreeing to oppose the FBI order.

Split Over Compelled Decryption Deepens With Massachusetts Case

Encryption is as omnipresent as computers, tablets, and smartphones. Yet the Supreme Court has not provided guidance on the constitutional implications of compelling a suspect…
Camp Justice, site of the US war crimes tribunal compound at Guantanamo Bay US Naval Base, Cuba, July 15, 2009.

The September 11 Military Commissions Trudge On

Nearly two decades after the September 11 attacks, we are still waiting for justice to be administered to the majority of the Al Qaeda suspects being held at Guantanamo—including…
Police arrest activists demonstrating against anti-immigration policies near the US-Mexico border fence at Imperial beach in San Diego county, US on December 10, 2018.

CBP’s New Social Media Surveillance: A Threat to Free Speech and Privacy

U.S. Customs and Border Protection's efforts to map out the networks and activities of American activists and journalists through link analysis and social media monitoring pose…
International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda (C) sits at the courtroom of the International Criminal Court (ICC) during the closing statements of the trial of former Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda in the Hague, the Netherlands, on August 28, 2018.

Deconstructing the Int’l Criminal Court’s Decision on Afghanistan

The decision of the International Criminal Court’s Pre-Trial Chamber II refusing to open an investigation into crimes committed in Afghanistan establishes a new Rome Statute…
Trump talks to Giuliani as they exit the clubhouse following their meeting at Trump International Golf Club, November 20, 2016 in Bedminster Township, New Jersey.

Mueller Report and the President’s Personal Lawyers: Did They Violate Criminal Law and Ethical Rules?

Leading legal ethics professor analyzes the criminal law and ethical rules that would apply in light of conduct of Trumps personal lawyers revealed in the Mueller Report.
U.S. Attorney General William Barr speaks with a clenched fist about the release of the redacted version of the Mueller report as U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and U.S. Acting Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Ed O’Callaghan stand behind him at the Department of Justice April 18, 2019 in Washington, DC.

On Mueller Report, Barr Says No Executive Privilege Redactions. But Look for Assertion Later.

The release of the redacted version of the Mueller Report may not signal the end of debates over Executive Privilege, and is likely only the beginning of congressional activity…
A sign reading, "Office of Military Commissions Expeditionary Legal Complex Guantanamo Bay, Cuba" stands close to where pre-trial hearings are being held for the detainees at the military prison on June 25, 2013 in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Al-Nashiri III: A No Good, Very Bad Day for U.S. Military Commissions

A stunning, unanimous opinion of the DC Court of Appeals throws out every single pretrial order issued over the past 3 1/2 years in case of Al-Nashiri. What this says about the…
U.S. Attorney General nominee William Barr testifies at his confirmation hearing as his image is shown on a television monitor behind him January 15, 2019 in Washington, DC.

Barr’s Redaction Process, cont’d

Attorney General William Barr testified at length last week, in the House and the Senate, about his ongoing process of redacting the Mueller Report in anticipation of sharing it…
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir delivers a speech to the nation on February 22, 2019, at the presidential palace in the capital Khartoum.

Julian Assange and Omar al-Bashir: What Comes Next for Two Global Fugitives?

Yesterday was a breathtaking one for global criminal justice. First, British police arrested Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian embassy in London and then, just hours later, the…
1-12 of 2,932 items

DON'T MISS A THING. Stay up to date with Just Security curated newsletters: