National Security Law Reports

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Patriot Debates

The discussions over the USA PATRIOT Act continue. Read Patriot Debates and be informed about both sides of the debate. The book contains detailed essays by noted legal experts on 16 provisions of the Act. Order Patriot Debates

Watch the actual debates! Go to:http://www.westlegaledcenter.com/ and type "Patriot Debates" under "key words" in "Search for CLE Programs" (Free registration required). (running time 1 hr. 36 min.)

Hurricane Katrina Task Force Report

This report evaluates the legal authorities available to prepare and respond to catastrophic incidents, whether from terrorism, accident or natural causes. It is the result of a joint effort between the ABA Standing Committee on Law and National Security, the ABA Section of State and Local Government Law and the ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice

Read the full report.

Listen to the Hurricane Katrina Task Force's presentation at the ABA midyear meeting program on February 10, 2006. (running time ~2 hr.)

Speakers included: Albert Harvey, Vice Chair, ABA Standing Committee on Law and National Security; Ernest Abbott, former General Counsel, FEMA; Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, House Select Committee on Homeland Security; John McCarthy, Critical Infrastructure Program, George Mason University School of Law; Suzanne Spaulding, immediate past Chair, ABA Standing Committee on Law and National Security and Lee Zeichner, former White House Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection.

Read the Standing Committee’s conference report from its June of 2004 conference on "Counterterrorism, Technology and Privacy" or order a paper copy

Forging an Iran Strategy: August 2006

Sponsored by the McCormick Tribune Foundation.
Organized and conducted by the American Foreign Policy Council and the National Strategy Forum.

Forging an Iran Strategy is a well researched and balanced discussion of the need for the U.S. to develop a strategy regarding Iran’s nuclear weapons development program and other related issues.

Read the report or order a free paper copy

Understanding the Privatization of National Security: May 2006

Sponsored by the McCormick Tribune Foundation.
Organized and conducted by the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Law and National Security and the National Strategy Forum.

On May 10-12, 2006, experts from the private sector, government, military, law enforcement, public health, and academia met at the McCormick Tribune Foundation Cantigny Conference Center in Wheaton, Illinois to discuss the implications of the trend toward the privatization of national security and functions traditionally performed by government.

The following issues were discussed:

• Factors that have impelled the increased utilization of Private Security Companies (PSCs) and Private Military Companies (PMCs)
• Negative and positive factors associated with governmental reliance on PSCs and PMCs
• Red tape issues: Are there missions that only the government should do? What missions should be outsourced to PSCs and PMCs?
• Policymaking for government-PSC/PMC issues
• Legal and accountability issues; self-regulation mechanisms; and Congressional oversight and the need for new legislation
• Ethical issues regarding the government-private security provider relationship
• The use of PSCs and PMCs for domestic security including critical infrastructure protection, catastrophic terrorism incidents, natural disasters, and border security (in lieu of state national guard troops)
• Lessons learned from the military-PSC/PMC relationship that can be applied to their future use for various security missions

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Law Amid the Ruins: Doing Business After Disaster: June 2005

Sponsored by the McCormick Tribune Foundation.
Organized and conducted by the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Law and National Security and the National Strategy Forum.

On May 11-13, 2005, experts from the government, business, legal, law enforcement, emergency responder, public health, public works and non-profit sectors met at the McCormick Tribune Foundation Cantigny Conference Center in Wheaton, IL to discuss continuity of operations (COOP) for the public and private sectors in the event of a catastrophic incident—an event that would have a widespread, potentially disastrous impact on U.S. critical infrastructure including medical, communication, transportation, financial, commercial, commerce, utility and trade services.

Conference participants identified issues, raised questions and offered suggestions regarding U.S. emergency preparedness, response and recovery planning for a catastrophic incident.

Read the report or order a paper copy of the full version

Counterterrorism: Technology and Privacy: June 2004

Sponsored by the McCormick Tribune Foundation.
Organized and conducted by the American Bar Association Standing Committee on Law and National Security and the National Strategy Forum.

Excerpt from Foreword, Written by Richard Behrenhausen, President and Chief Executive Officer, McCormick Tribune Foundation: "A national debate has flared over the past few years in the effort to reconcile two equally important—and sometimes conflicting—goals, keep the country safe from terrorism and protect citizens' expectation of privacy. But does having more safety necessarily mean having less privacy? And in what ways has the emergence of high-tech tools in all facets of our society changed the very notion of anonymity?"

On June 2004, at the McCormick Tribune Foundation's estate located just outside of Chicago, experts gathered from various fields–civil libertarians, federal law enforcement and security agency officials, members of the media, and former Members of Congress—to discuss an array of issues including emerging techniques in data-mining and surveillance and how technology could be used to protect civil liberties.

Read the report or order a paper copy

14th Annual Review of the Field (November 2004)

Read the full report.

Keynote Speakers:

• John B. Bellinger III, National Security Council
• David Kay, Potomac Institute: Intelligence Demands in a Post-9/11 World
• James Steinberg, Brookings Institution

Panels:

• Survey of New Developments in National Security Law: Perspectives from the Executive Branch: John Rizzo, CIA; Valerie Caproni, FBI; Joe Whitley, DHS; Charles Allen, DoD; Hal Dronburger, Joint Cheifs of Staff
• Survey of New Developments in National Security Law: Views from the Hill: David Schanzer, House Select Committee on Homeland Security; Paul Clayman, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations; Scott Stucky, Senate Committee on Armed Services
• Counter Terrorism Technology and Privacy: Kate Martin, Center for National Security Studies; Paul Rosenzweig, Heritage Foundation; Heather Mac Donald, Manhattan Institute; Kim Taipale, Center for Advanced Studies in Science and Technology Policy
• Intelligence Organizations and the 9/11 Commission: Suzanne Spaulding, Immediate Past Chair ABA Standing Committee on Law and National Security; Jeffrey Smith, Arnold & Porter; Philip Zelikow, Miller Center of Public Affairs; Howard Shapiro, Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr
• Inside Military Comissions: Col. Will Gunn, USAF; Toni Locy, USA Today; Louis Fisher, Congressional Research Service; Major General John Altenburg Jr., US Army (Ret.)
• Will the USA PATRIOT Act Ride into the Sunset? Professor Viet Dinh, Georgetown University School of Law; Professor David Cole, Georgetown University School of Law; Andrew C. McCarthy, Foundation for the Defense of Democracies; and Sampak Garg, House Committee on the Judiciary

13th Annual Review of the Field (November 2003)

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Keynote Speakers:

• Jack L. Goldsmith III, Asst AG, Office of Legal Counsel, DoJ
• Gen. Richard B. Myers, USAF, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• Tom C. Korogolos, Senior Counselor to Ambassador L. Paul Bremer at the Coalition Provisional Authority

Panels:

• Survey of New Developments in National Security Law: Perspectives from the Executive Branch: John B. Bellinger III, National Security Council; Scott W. Muller, CIA; M. E. "Spike" Bowman, FBI; Charles Allen, DoD; Capt. Hal Dronburger, USN, JCS
• Survey of New Developments in National Security Law: Views from the Hill: David Schanzer, House Select Committee on Homeland Security; Michael Davidson, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence; Jonathan Scharfen, House International Relations Committee, Scott Stucky, Senate Committee on Armed Services
• Reconstruction Efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan: Building Security, Democracy, and the Rule of Law: Col. Todd Wilson, Department of State; Amb. Richard Schifter, former US representative to the U.N. Security Council; A. P. Carlton, Former ABA President; Charles Allen, DoD; Christopher Spear, Department of Labor
• Jurisdiction Over War Crimes: What Should Our Policy Be? Ruth Wedgwood, Johns Hopkins University; David Rivkin, Baker & Hostetler LLP, Diane Orentlicher, American University; William Hannay III, Schiff Hardin & Waite LLP,
• Transforming the Department of Defense: Changing Support Positions to Warfighters: Hon. Charles Abell, Undersecretary for Personnel and Readiness, DoD; Jack Spencer, Heritage Foundation; Maj. Gen. William Moorman, USAF (ret.); Peter Levine, Senate Committee on Armed Services
• What is the Best Legal Forum for Bringing Terrorists to Justice? Joseph Onek, Constitution Project; Viet Dinh, Georgetown University Law Center, Paul Schott Stevens, Dechert LLP; Eugene Fidell of Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP

12th Annual Review of the Field (November 2002)

Read the full report.

Keynote Speakers:

• Ambassador Francis Taylor, Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security, U.S. Department of State
• John Bellinger III, Senior Associate Counsel to the President and Legal Adviser to the National Security Council

Panels:

• Executive Branch Roundtable: James Thessin, Department of State; Kenneth Wainstein, FBI; John Rizzo, CIA; Whit Cobb, DoD; Capt. Jane Dalton, USN, JCS
• Capitol Hill Roundtable Richard Hertling, Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs; Vicki Divoll, Senate Committee on Intelligence; Michael Sheehy, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; Scott Stucky, Senate Committee on Armed Services
• Use of Force Against Rogue States: Constitutional and International Law Perspectives: Michael Byers, Duke Law School; Ruth Wedgwood, Johns Hopkins University; David Ackerman, Congressional Research Service; Maj. Gen. John Altenberg, US Army (Ret.)
• Leaks - Dealing with Unauthorized Disclosure of Classified Information: James Bruce, CIA; Doyle McManus, Los Angeles Times; W. George Jameson, CIA; Robert O'Neil, Jefferson Center for Protection of Freedom of Expression; Timothy R. Sample, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Patrick D.Murray, DoJ
• Detention and Prosecution of Terrorists: David Cole, Georgetown University Law Center; Victoria Toensing, diGenova and Toensing LLP; Paul Virtue, Hogan & Hartson LLP; Judge Walter T. Cox, Duke University School of Law
• The Prevention of Terrorism: L. Britt Snider, Former Inspector General, CIA; Kate Martin, Center for National Security Studies;Richard Shiffrin, DoD; Spike Bowman, FBI; Stewart Baker, Steptoe & Johnson

Standing Committee on Law and National Security, 1962 – 2002: A Brief History

Read about our first 40 years.

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Careers in National Security Law

This issue of the National Security Law Report contains career information and profiles of six leading National Security lawyers.

Read the report

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