Founded in April 2009, the American University National Security Law Brief is the nation's first student-run law school publication to focus on the rapidly evolving field of national security law. The publication is published twice a year, with a complementary online component, and is edited and published by students at American University Washington College of Law.
The National Security Law Brief is devoted to examining United States national security law and policy. Through the hard work and dedication of our staff, advisors, and supporters, the Brief continues to be a leader national security law analysis. This issue of the seventh volume of the National Security Law Brief publishes incisive legal analysis and commentary concerning privacy rights, the mental health of national security practitioners, and cybersecurity. It contains the following articles: Strengthen Section 702: A Critical Intelligence Tool Vital to the Protection of our CountryThe United States possesses the most powerful intelligence collection capabilities in the world. Recent disclosures about these capabilities have caused a growing interest in privacy rights and sparked fears of a surveillance state. This article analyzes and makes recommendations about Section 702, which authorizes the collection of foreign intelligence information concerning non-United States persons located outside of the United States. The article argues against placing further constraints on the Government's capabilities to collect and view certain types of data. The article further posits that, in light of the increasing number of threats that face the United States is facing, certain provisions of Section 702 should be amended to allow the collection of information on certain U.S and non-United States citizens without individualized judicial review. The Mental Health of our National Security: Protecting the Minds that Protect the HomelandMental health is an often overlooked aspect of United States national security law. This poignant article depicts the psychological pain borne by those who protect our country and concludes that the United States is failing both its national security law practitioners and citizens by refusing to seriously address mental health. The article examines the legal framework for mental health support for our national security practitioners and argues for better resourcing, screening, and organizational cultures. Cybersecurity, Identity Theft, and Standing Law: A Framework for Data Breaches Using Substantial Risk in a post-Clapper WorldHigh profile cyberattacks targeting personal and confidential information have become commonplace in the digital age. This article posits that since Clapper v. Amnesty International USA, courts have disallowed standing for victims alleging heightened risk of injury due to identity theft. The article argues that Clapper did not actually alter Article III standing requirements. The article further argues that the courts should allow standing using a heightened-risk-of-identity theft.
Founded in April 2009, the American University National Security Law Brief is the nation's first student-run law school publication to focus on the rapidly evolving field of national security law. The publication is published twice a year, with a complementary online component, and is edited and published by students at American University Washington College of Law.
This issue is the inaugural issue of The Forum on National Security Law. It was one of the goals of the past executive board to expand into the realm of electronic publications, and we are very excited to finally bring it to fruition! That said, within these pages, you will find a range of topics on national security law, including a bibliographic overview of the Fourth Amendment as it relates to national security, the issue of arming recreational drones, digital encryption, and the tension between border security and international relations.Eight years ago, our founding counterparts set their intentions and academic convictions to paper in the enclosed blog post. In establishing this Brief, those who came before us threw down a gauntlet, calling upon law students to come together to enhance and underline essential debates in the National Security realm, anchoring them in legal analysis. This is a gauntlet we, the editorial board for Volume IX of the National Security Law Brief, gladly pick up. In the years since the Brief published its first issue, the world has changed immeasurably. Over the existence of the Brief, our staffers have seen the rise of ISIL; the fall of long-standing regimes in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia; and the re-solidification of old Cold War battle lines. What the next nine, nineteen or ninety years hold for the national security field is uncertain. What is certain, however, is that learned debate and discussion on critical topics requires an outlet, and that is what this publication strives to provide.
The purchase of this ebook edition does not entitle you to receive access to the Connected eBook on CasebookConnect. You will need to purchase a new print book to get access to the full experience including: lifetime access to the online ebook with highlight, annotation, and search capabilities, plus an outline tool and other helpful resources. National Security Law and the Constitution provides a comprehensive examination and analysis of the inherent tension between the Constitution and select national security policies, and it explores the multiple dimensions of that conflict. Specifically, the Second Edition comprehensively explores the constitutional foundation for the development of national security policy and the exercise of a wide array of national security powers. Each chapter focuses on critically important precedents, offering targeted questions following each case to assist students in identifying key concepts to draw from the primary sources. Offering students a comprehensive yet focused treatment of key national security law concepts, National Security Law and the Constitution is well suited for a course that is as much an advanced “as applied” constitutional law course as it is a national security law or international relations course. New to the Second Edition: New author Gary Corn is the program director for the Tech, Law and Security Program at American University Washington College of Law, and most recently served as the Staff Judge Advocate to U.S. Cyber Command, the capstone to a distinguished career spanning over twenty-seven years as a military lawyer Two new chapters: Chapter 1 (An Introduction to the “National Security” Constitution), and Chapter 17 (National Security in the Digital Age) Professors and students will benefit from: An organizational structure tailored to present these national powers as a coherent “big picture,” with the aim of understanding their interrelationship with each other, and the legal principles they share A comprehensive treatment of the relationship between constitutional, statutory, and international law, and the creation and implementation of policies to regulate the primary tools in the government’s national security arsenal Targeted case introductions and follow-on questions, enabling students to maximize understanding of the text Text boxes illustrating key principles with historical events, and highlight important issues, rules, and principles closely related to the primary sources Chapters that focus on primary or key authorities with limited diversion into secondary sources A text structure generally aligned to fit a three-hour, one-semester course offering
The rise of international terrorism in today’s globalized world has focused attention on the degree to which international law should shape U.S. national security law and policy. This unique textbook of readings explores how international law relates to U.S. constitutional and statutory law in terms of the right to wage war, the law of armed conflict, combatant status, interrogation of detainees, military commissions, covert action, targeted killing, electronic surveillance, and cyber war. Each chapter is composed of a chronological set of core readings followed by a set of provocative questions, with commentary linking one reading to the next. Written in a lively and engaging manner, U.S. National Security Law makes challenging subject matter accessible for undergraduate students outside of a law school classroom.
For the last 30 years, National Security Law has helped create and shape an entire new field of law. It has been adopted for classroom use at most American law schools, all of the military academies, and many non-law graduate programs. The Seventh Edition of this leading casebook provides an up-to-date, user-friendly survey of this extremely dynamic field. Relying heavily on original materials and provocative notes and questions, this book encourages students to play the roles of national security professionals, politicians, judges, and ordinary citizens. And by showing the development of doctrine in historical context, it urges them to see their responsibility as lawyers to help keep us safe and free. Like earlier editions, the new book deals with basic separation-of-powers principles, the interaction of U.S. and international law, the use of military force, intelligence, detention, criminal prosecution, homeland security, and national security information — more than enough to provide teachers with a rich menu of readings for classes. New to the Seventh Edition: Latest developments on U.S. military involvement in Syria and Iran President Trump’s Border Wall and appropriations power Carpenter v. U.S. and recent FISA developments and FISC decisions Trump travel ban “Defending forward” in cyberspace New chapter on nuclear war Professors and students will benefit from: Carefully curated and edited original materials Extensive notes and questions to fill in the blanks Read-ins and chapter summaries to provide perspective Frequent references to historical and political context
The United States faces the realistic and indefinite threat of terrorist attack with nuclear weapons. Whether the United States is successful in preventing such an attack will depend on whether we effectively wield the instruments of security. It will also depend on whether we effectively manage national security processes and apply the law in a manner that both enhances security and upholds our core values. As a result, lawyers, not just presidents, generals, and spies, will decide the outcome of this conflict. This book, first published in 2007, is essential for anyone wanting an understanding of national security law and process. The book includes chapters on constitutional law, the use of force, and homeland security, presented in the context of today's threats and as applied to issues like rendition and electronic surveillance.
The twenty-first century witnessed a new age of whistleblowing in the United States. Disclosures by Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, and others have stoked heated public debates about the ethics of exposing institutional secrets, with roots in a longer history of state insiders revealing privileged information. Bringing together contributors from a range of disciplines to consider political, legal, and cultural dimensions, Whistleblowing Nation is a pathbreaking history of national security disclosures and state secrecy from World War I to the present. The contributors explore the complex politics, motives, and ideologies behind the revelation of state secrets that threaten the status quo, challenging reductive characterizations of whistleblowers as heroes or traitors. They examine the dynamics of state retaliation, political backlash, and civic contests over the legitimacy and significance of the exposure and the whistleblower. The volume considers the growing power of the executive branch and its consequences for First Amendment rights, the protection and prosecution of whistleblowers, and the rise of vast classification and censorship regimes within the national-security state. Featuring analyses from leading historians, literary scholars, legal experts, and political scientists, Whistleblowing Nation sheds new light on the tension of secrecy and transparency, security and civil liberties, and the politics of truth and falsehood.
