Foreign Relations Law (LAW697)
Prof. Edwin M. Smith
M-W 10:55-11:45 Room 3
In this course we will examine the statutory, constitutional, and international legal structures that form the base of American diplomacy. We will look at the constitutional distribution of powers between the executive and legislative branches in foreign relations. Will also consider the law of nations as incorporated into United States law, and we will examine the processes by which treaties and other international agreements play a role in the American legal and political systems. We will also examine the highly controversial question of War Powers under the constitution, and their relation to power of the purse and the judicial management of legal questions in foreign relations. Finally we will explore national security and the degree to which important goals in that the arena may be inconsistent with the freedom of expression traditionally respected under the Constitution.
The text book for the course will be FOREIGN RELATIONS AND THE NATIONAL SECURITY LAW: CASES, MATERIALS, AND SIMULATIONS by Professors Thomas Franck and Michael Glennon (2nd ed., West, 1997). (Assigned pages are in the Franck and Glennon text.) The assignments in the course will involve textual material as well as simulation exercises. The final grade in the course will be based on a written examination that will rely upon both the text and the exercises.
Reading Assignments
The Foundations Of Foreign Relations Powers
International Norms In The American Legal System
Treaties and Other International Agreements in US Law
The War Power
The Power of the Purse
Judicial Role in Resolving Foreign Relations Conflicts
National Security and Free Speech