HLS in the World | The Office of Legal Counsel and the Challenge of Legal Advice to the President

Harvard Law School Professor Jack Goldsmith and Hon. David Barron ’94, judge of the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals, discussed the role of the Ofice of Legal Counsel in advising the president and the executive branch more broadly, with particular reference to the challenge of providing legal advice concerning national security and presidential power. Goldsmith served as Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel from 2003-2004, and Special Counsel to the Department of Defense from 2002-2003. Barron was an attorney advisor for the Office of Legal Counsel of the United States Department of Justice from 1996 to 1999, and rejoined the Justice Department as Acting Assistant Attorney General from 2009 to 2010. Their talk was part of the HLS in the World bicentennial summit which took place at Harvard Law School on Friday, October 27, 2017. For more on HLS' Bicentennial, go to: http://200.hls.harvard.edu/