Since September 11, 2001, transnational terrorism has been treated as both crime and war.  Accordingly, the U.S. and other states have targeted members of Al Qaeda and associated forces in major military operations and in surgical strikes, captured and held such persons as law-of-war detainees, and prosecuted suspected members of such groups for terrorism offenses and war crimes, in civilian courts and military tribunals. 

This course will examine these developments in historical perspective, and will analyze their implications for the interstate system (focusing on the law of state responsibility), the law of war (in particular, combatant and civilian status and associated protections), and the structures of the U.S. Constitution governing war, crime, and military jurisdiction.

Since September 11, 2001, transnational terrorism has been treated as both crime and war.  Accordingly, the U.S. and other states have captured and held members of Al Qaeda and associated forces as law-of-war detainees, targeted such individuals in major military operations and surgical strikes on the territories of (certain) third-party states, and have prosecuted suspected members of those groups, for “terrorism” offenses and for “war crimes,” in civilian courts and military tribunals.  This course will explore the reasons for this novel development and consider its ramifications for public international law, the law of war, and U.S. constitutional law.  

To understand any body of law, it is useful to understand its origins and development.  To understand international law – a body of law based largely on custom and “incremental development” – the study of its history is especially crucial.  The History of International Law will trace the development of the “Law of Nations” from its roots in the ancient world forward to the modern day.  The course will focus on the development of the core concepts of international law, including sovereignty, state responsibility, jurisdiction, territoriality, and nationality, and will trace the evolution of practice and thought on the field’s perennial quandaries, including the bases of international obligations and the mechanisms of enforcement.  By gaining a cohesive overview of the field’s historical underpinnings, students will be equipped with a firm grounding and framework for analysis of issues in the diverse areas of international law that they may study or in which they may practice.

To understand any body of law, it is useful to understand its origins and development.  To understand international law – a body of law based largely on custom and “incremental development” – the study of its history is especially crucial.  The History of International Law will trace the development of the “Law of Nations” from its roots in the ancient world forward to the modern day.  The course will focus on the development of the core concepts of international law, including sovereignty, state responsibility, jurisdiction, territoriality, and nationality, and will trace the evolution of practice and thought on the field’s perennial quandaries, including the bases of international obligations and the mechanisms of enforcement.  By gaining a cohesive overview of the field’s historical underpinnings, students will be equipped with a firm grounding and framework for analysis of issues in the diverse areas of international law that they may study or in which they may practice.