2014 CAAF Judicial Conference

Each year the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces presents a two-day conference open to the public.  This year’s conference almost didn't happen because of budget issues, but it did. Compared to some of the previous years, the program was a good one and well received by the audience.

You can read the handouts now on CAAF.  There are some interesting items for the practitioner, as well as an overview for others of the quality of the program.

I have Lincoln's Code: The Laws of War in American History, by Professor John Fabian Witt, Allen H. Duffy Class of 1960 Professor of Law,Yale Law School, it’s a five-star read. I recommend it alongside Stephen C. Neff’s, Justice in Blue and Gray: A Legal History of the Civil War.  Despite the name of the book, Neff explores some of the same issue as Witt.  A review says, “An essential book for understanding America's bifurcated legal system in wartime--the criminal courts under an established jurisprudence and military commissions pursuant to the law of war. Indeed, many issues Neff examines--sovereignty, detention, civil liberties in wartime--are relevant today.”