Power Without Impunity: War Crimes and Illegal Orders

When unlawful orders are given, whether in times of war or in moments of domestic unrest, who bears responsibility, and where does accountability truly lie? Ryan Goodman moderates this timely conversation with Tess Bridgeman and Mary McCord to examine the global legal frameworks that govern war crimes and executive power. How do those principles apply within the American constitutional system, from the potential criminal exposure of federal agents and cabinet officials, to the constitutional limits on presidential authority to deploy the military within our borders? Tess Bridgeman is co-editor-in-chief of Just Security and a Senior Fellow and Visiting Scholar at NYU Law School’s Reiss Center on Law and Security, where she founded the War Powers Resolution Reporting Project. Mary McCord is executive director of the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown Law School and the former Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security at the US Department of Justice. Ryan Goodman (moderator) is the Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Professor of Law at NYU Law School and co-editor-in-chief of Just Security, prior to which he served as special counsel to the general counsel of the Department of Defense.