Recent Articles
Initial GTMO PRB decisions now completed, with 29 remaining uncharged and uncleared law-of-war detainees
Last week the Presidential Review Board issued the final two decisions from its initial hearings of remaining GTMO detainees who were not already charged or cleared for transfer:…

The Investigatory Powers Act: The Official Entrenchment of Far-Reaching Surveillance Powers
What was formerly known as the Investigatory Powers Bill, referred to elsewhere as the “revised Snoopers’ Charter,” has received Royal Assent and, as of Nov. 29,…
Two lingering concerns about the forthcoming Law of War Manual amendments
We commend Department of Defense General Counsel Jennifer O’Connor for her very important speech at NYU Monday evening—especially for her vivid, detailed account of how the…
The Early Edition: November 30, 2016
Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news. DONALD TRUMP’S FOREIGN…
A Short Course on the Constitutional Law of Expatriation
The President-Elect is at it again: Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag – if they do, there must be consequences – perhaps loss of citizenship or year…

Philip Bobbitt’s War Without Tears
In times of war, it’s sometimes said, the laws fall silent—but the laws, and the human rights lawyers who would enforce them, are still faintly murmuring, and these faint murmurs…
The Early Edition: November 29, 2016
Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news. DONALD TRUMP’S FOREIGN…

NATO and European Responses to the Election of Donald Trump
Since the election of Donald J. Trump as the 45th President of the United States, many states, regional bodies and international organizations have followed the diplomatic rituals…
Two new excellent accounts about why the torture program won’t be revived
I strongly recommend this post by Jack Goldsmith and this article by Matt Apuzzo and James Risen, following up on this excellent Just Security post by Alex Whiting.
“Applying the Law of Targeting to the Modern Battlefield” – Full Speech Given by DOD General Counsel Jennifer O’Connor
Below is the speech, “Applying the Law of Targeting to the Modern Battlefield,” given by Jennifer O’Connor, general counsel of the Department of Defense, tonight…

Shrinking the “Bloated” Federal Bureaucracy: A Bad Solution to a Non-Problem
During his campaign, Donald Trump promised “a hiring freeze on all federal employees to reduce the federal workforce through attrition (exempting military, public safety, and…

Public Support for Torture Based on Prejudice
The New York Times misreported its own meeting with the President-elect concerning his views on torture, and how much he has changed his mind. Here I want to focus on one aspect…