Discipline Law Publication history 2013-present | Language English Frequency Biannually | |
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Edited by Rick Myers, Sean Murphy, Lynzi Maas Publisher George Mason University School of Law (United States) | ||
The National Security Law Journal is a biannual student-edited law journal at George Mason University School of Law. The journal covers the field of national security law, including legal issues related to diplomacy, intelligence, homeland security, and the military. The first issue was released in March 2013.
Contents
The journal was cited widely in national and international media in the summer of 2015 for publishing an article that shed light on controversial views held by a professor then teaching at the U.S. Military Academy.
Events
On April 2, 2013, the journal hosted a symposium on cybersecurity with Michael V. Hayden, former director of the National Security Agency and Central Intelligence Agency; Suzanne E. Spaulding, Deputy Under Secretary for the National Protection and Programs Directorate at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; and Ronald D. Lee, partner at Arnold & Porter and former General Counsel, National Security Agency.
On November 6, 2013, the journal hosted "Drone Wars", a panel discussion on the legal framework for the use of drones under the law of armed conflict, featuring panelists from the Heritage Foundation, The New York Times, BBC News, and George Mason University. The following week, on November 12, 2013, the journal hosted "Blinking Red: Crisis and Compromise in American Intelligence After 9/11", a discussion with author and former Congressional staffer Michael Allen on his new book on intelligence reform.
On March 26, 2014, the journal hosted an event with former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey, who spoke on the NSA, wiretapping, and PRISM.
Impact
The journal attracted international media attention in the summer of 2015 when it published an article by William C. Bradford. The article, titled Trahison des Professeurs, argues that law professors who criticize the War on Terror are operating as an Islamist Fifth Column and should therefore be treated as “targetable” unlawful enemy combatants. The article was published in part to shed light on these controversial views and to invite responses from other academics.
The journal’s new Editorial Board soon repudiated the article and posted a highly critical response authored by George Mason Law Professor Jeremy A. Rabkin. Bradford defended his views but resigned from his teaching position at the U.S. Military Academy. The controversy was covered by The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Atlantic, FOX News, and the Associated Press, among others.
The National Security Law Journal has also previously been cited in newspapers such as Roll Call.