At the crossroads of scholarship and practice
The Lieber Institute at West Point facilitates and contributes to the global dialogue on today’s most pressing and complex law of war issues. Through its research, publications, events and education, it strives to advance the understanding and maintain the primacy of law in today’s armed conflicts.
The Lieber Institute seeks to bridge the divide between legal scholarship and battlefield experience in the study of the law. It engages in innovative research and collaboration on multiple topics of legal study including targeting, detention, artificial intelligence, emerging technologies and war crimes accountability.
Researching Cutting-edge Issues.
Promoting Understanding.
Empowering Combat Leaders.
How Lessons Learned from the CCW Can Help Guide the Regulation of AWS
Autonomous weapon systems have become a familiar set piece in contemporary International Humanitarian Law (IHL) debates. The questions are by now well-rehearsed: does the existing law of armed conflict already regulate these systems; can algorithms reliably...
The ICJ Obligations of Israel Advisory Opinion – Mass Deprivation and Preventive Protection
Editors’ note: This post is part of a series featuring analysis of the 2025 International Court of Justice advisory opinion on obligations of Israel in and in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The introductory post to the series by Sean Watts is...
Of Evolving Belligerent Occupation Law: Old “Hague” Occupation and New “Geneva” Occupation
For years, the legal status of so-called “functional occupation” was unclear in international humanitarian law (IHL) (see, e.g., this 2012 work by Zwanenburg, Bothe, and Sassòli). In 2024, however, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) adopted a new take on...
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Volume 9
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