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.
2,973 Articles
Trust, But Verify: Three Grand Jury Reforms to Hold the Government Accountable
Steps should be taken to strengthen grand juries by giving courts and defense counsel more tools to act as a much-needed check on prosecutors.
“Zero Evidence”: How Judges and Grand Juries Have Rejected Trump Administration Efforts to Investigate and Prosecute
A detailed record of federal courts and grand juries rejecting the Trump administration’s use of subpoenas, search warrants, and indictments.
The Alien Terrorist Removal Court’s First Case
Unpacking the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, what we know about its first case, and what to watch for going forward.
Key Trump Deportation Strategies: Removing, Replacing, and Pressuring Immigration Judges
New data shows how mass firings, loyalist replacements, and pressure tactics are turning U.S. immigration courts into a deportation enforcement arm.
How to Choose Which Military Members to Hold Accountable for Illegal Boat Strikes
A retired judge advocate explains how a future administration could decide who to prosecute for the illegal strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats.
Justice Gorsuch’s Slaughter Opinion is a Direct Threat to Congress
In light of recent Supreme Court rulings, Congress should act now to assert the full extent of its authority over the federal bureaucracy.
To Audition for the Role of Attorney General, Blanche Is Prosecuting to Please
Attorney General nominee Todd Blanche's prosecutions of Comey and others reveal a pattern of prosecutorial sycophancy — charges brought to please Trump.
“Lost to History”: Uses and Abuses of the Past in Slaughter and Cook
In these two cases, the Court misread history with an unmistakable result: two fundamentally irreconcilable decisions.
Breaking the Cycle: Transitional Justice in America After Trump
A post-Trump America must finally turn transitional justice tools inward and reckon with failures it has long refused to face if it aims to repair, not simply ignore.
A Path For Middle Powers and a Rules-Based International Order: A Functional Perspective
German scholars argue that from a realpolitik perspective, commitment to international law is essential for States whose power is limited.
The Federal Reserve Exception to the Slaughter Rule
On the Supreme Court’s latest reasoning about the Federal Reserve and the fault lines that are likely to emerge in the years ahead.
Not Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Historical Commissions Are Crucial for Syria
Transitional justice approaches in Syria must not isolate periods of oppression from the broader contexts that enabled them.