Recent Articles

Keeping Track of Trump’s Conflicts of Interest [Updated Dec. 5]
Since the election, there has been a firehose of news: President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks, rumors about Trump’s cabinet picks, a Neo-Nazi conference in Washington,…
Letter to the Editor: Response to Human Rights in Armed Conflict, Part I
In a previous post, I raised numerous concerns with Prof. Adil Haque’s novel proposal that lowers the threshold for determining what constitutes a non-international armed conflict…
Human Rights in Armed Conflict, Part II
In my previous post, I took seriously Jonathan Horowitz’s concern that some States believe that the application of international humanitarian law (IHL) may displace or reduce…

Foreign Gov’t Assistance to Trump Administration Policies: What Int’l Law Prohibits
The policies of the incoming Trump Administration may spell legal trouble for cooperation between the United States and its allies in important areas of national security. One…
The Early Edition: November 23, 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…

Questions for the Defense Department’s General Counsel
On Monday, Nov. 28 at 6 p.m., Jennifer O’Connor, general counsel of the Department of Defense, is giving a talk at NYU School of Law on “Applying the Law of Targeting to the…
Smith v. Obama: The Political Question Doctrine Misapplied
Having joined The Constitution Project in an amicus brief in Smith v. Obama, I am disappointed the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia decided to dismiss the case…

Businesslike Government, Presidential Power, and the Erosion of the Civil Service
Immediately after the election, I wrote about the administrative separation of powers, specifically about how the rivalrous and contentious interplay of politically appointed agency…
Judge Kollar-Kotelly dismisses Captain Smith’s suit
As expected, Judge Kollar-Kotelly has granted the government’s motion to dismiss Captain Smith’s suit challenging the legality of Operation Inherent Resolve. Importantly,…
The Early Edition: November 22, 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…
Human Rights in Armed Conflict, Part I
When powerful States adopt a mistaken view of international law, should we—scholars, practitioners, and activists—resist their view and insist on our own? Or should we regard…

10 Steps to Avoid Becoming a Tin Pot Kleptocracy (and safeguard our national security in the process)
The President-elect must make his tax returns public. The public at large will then know precisely the nature and form of his extensive business interests. The President-elect…