Georgetown Law

Carrie Cordero is the Robert M. Gates Senior Fellow and General Counsel at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), and is a national security lawyer with government, academic and private practice experience. Professor Cordero spent the first part of her career in public service, including as Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for National Security; Senior Associate General Counsel at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence; and Attorney Advisor at the U.S. Department of Justice, during which time she handled critical counterterrorism and counterintelligence investigations, and appeared frequently before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. She also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney. As a recognized voice on national security legal and policy issues, Professor Cordero is frequently invited to speak at chambers of commerce, bar associations, law schools and think tanks in Washington D.C. and across the country. She has testified on surveillance reform law and policy issues before the United States Congress. She often provides legal and national security analysis and commentary to the media, including TV, print and radio outlets, and is currently a CNN contributor. She is a contributing editor of Lawfare, and has published op-eds with CNN Opinion, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, National Law Journal and Richmond Times-Dispatch. Professor Cordero previously served as the Director of National Security Studies here at the Law Center, where she was involved in coordinating the national security law academic program. Professor Cordero earned her J.D., cum laude, from the Washington College of Law, American University, and B.A., magna cum laude, from Barnard College, Columbia University. She is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and Maryland, and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US).