Anthony Clark Arend

I have been remiss in giving a shout-out to an excellent new (well, at least relatively, new) blog on national security law. Entitled Lawfare: Hard National Security Choices, this blog is written by three outstanding commentators in the field– Ben Wittes, Bobby Chesney, and Jack Goldsmith. I highly recommend it for thoughtful discussions of the most pressing legal issues relating …

In case you missed it, the New York Times had an excellent editorial on the value of using civilian, Article III, courts for trying terror suspects. They write:
Supporters of the tribunals at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, who insist military justice, not the federal courts, is the best way to deal with terrorists, should pay close attention to Tuesday’s events …

Professor Bobby Chesney explains:

The Supreme Court granted cert. yesterday in General Dynamics v. United States and Boeing v. United States, both arising out of the massive, long-running contract dispute associated with the cancellation of the A-12 Avenger II program.  The question presented? As framed in General Dynamics: ”Whether the government can maintain its claim against a party when it invokes the state …

The Washington Post reports:
When senior Obama administration officials invoked the state secrets privilege Saturday to dismiss a lawsuit brought on behalf of U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Aulaqi, they declared in federal court that the case threatened to expose secret military and intelligence operations against al-Qaeda’s overseas network.
In a 60-page filing, the government asked U.S. District Judge [John] Bates to dismiss a …

As noted in a previous post, a divided panel of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum that customary international law does not recognize corporate liability for torts in violation of the law of nations.  Judge Carbranes, writing for the majority (which included Chief Judge Jacobs), succinctly summarized this decision in the conclusion to …

My dear friend Steve Bainbridge just brought a major decision of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to my attention– Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum. Steve writes:

If this holds up, it’s going to be very big news:
In a blockbuster opinion that could spell the end of the vast bulk of Alien Tort Statute litigation, the U.S. Court of Appeals …

Former Assistant Attorney General Jack Goldsmith has an op ed in today Washington Post in which he comments on the current dysfunctionality of the current detention and trial system for terror suspects. His specific recommendations:
There is no silver bullet for this mess, but a few pragmatic steps can bring real progress toward resolution.
First, give up on closing the Guantanamo Bay …

In the wake of anti-Muslim rhetoric that has been dominating the press,  National security law expert, Suzanne Spaulding, has created an on-line petition for Americans to register their support for religious freedom. Her letter follows:

Dear Friends,
I have been increasingly concerned over the last few weeks about the anti-Muslim rhetoric that has been spreading across the country, from opposition to mosques …