Trends in Law Practice

The Center conducts research and analysis on the various ways in which the structure and nature of law practice is changing and the forces that are driving these changes, with Senior Fellow Jim Jones playing a leading role in this work The Center publishes an Annual Report on the Legal Market, which is one of the most widely cited analyses of the legal industry. It also partners with the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford and Thomson Reuters to conduct periodic global surveys and analyses of alternative legal service providers. Research on trends in the legal profession also includes research on lawyers, their careers and well-being by Senior Fellows Heather Bock and Lori Berman.

National Security Lawyers

Research in this area examines the distinctive nature of the responsibilities of lawyers who work in the field of national security in both civilian and military roles, with Professor and Senior Fellows Mary DeRosa and Todd Huntley and Professor Mitt Regan coordinating this work. The Center also sponsors workshops, panel discussions, and speakers on this topic.  Professors DeRosa and Regan are senior researchers on a project funded by the European Research Council on Global Terrorism and Collective Moral Responsibility: Redesigning Military, Police and Intelligence Institutions in Liberal Democracies. Professor Regan also is a senior researcher on a project funded by the Australian Research Council on National Security Intelligence: Ethics, Ethics, and Accountability. Recent publications in the field include National Security and “Secret Law,” (2021) by Professor Regan; Citizens, Suspects, and Enemies: Examining Police Militarization (2020) by Professor Regan; From Protecting Lives to Protecting States: Use of Force Across the Threat Continuum (2019) by Professor Regan; The President and Nuclear Weapons: Authorities, Limits, and Process (2019), by Professor DeRosa and Ashley Nicolas; National Security Lawyering: The Best View of the Law as a Regulative Ideal (2018) by Professor DeRosa; Deliberative Constitutionalism in the National Security Setting (2018) by Professors DeRosa and Regan; General Counsel of the FBI, James Baker, in Conversation with Professor Mary DeRosa on the FBI and International Justice (2017) by Professor DeRosa; and Legal Issues in Special Operations, in U.S. Military Operations: Law, Policy, and Practice (Oxford University Press 2015) by Professor Huntley and Mathew Grant.

Lawyers, Business, and Human Rights

The Center explores the increasing attention given to the human rights impacts of business operations and the role of lawyers in increasing awareness of and accountability for such impacts, led by Senior Fellow Elise Groulx Diggs and Professor Regan. Publications include The Regulation of Multinational Labour and Employment Practices Through a Galaxy of Norms (2020) by Ms. Diggs, Brian Burkett, and Professor Regan; Business and Human Rights Law as a Galaxy of Norms (2019) by Ms. Diggs, Professor Regan, and Professor Beatrice Parance of the University of Paris; Lawyers, Globalization, and Transnational Governance Regimes (2016); and Lawyers in the Shadow of the Regulatory State: Transnational Governance on Business and Human Rights (2016) by Professor Kath Hall of Australian National University and Professor Regan.

Race and the Legal Profession 

The Center examines the experience of racial and ethnic minorities in seeking entry into the legal profession, advancing within it, and pursuing legal careers that are satisfying.  This includes identifying and understanding the distinctive challenges that minorities encounter in their careers and the ways in which race subtly shapes opportunities in and working assumptions of the legal profession. The Center engages in research on these issues and works with minority students and student organizations to provide guidance and support in pursuing careers in the profession.  Professor and Senior Fellow Jamillah Williams and Professor Regan coordinate work in this area.  

Ethics and Moral Psychology

This program examines the implications of research in multiple disciplines on moral perception, judgment, and decision-making. These disciplines include cognitive science, psychology, neuroscience, organizational behavior, institutional sociology, and organizational culture.  Professor Regan is principal investigator on Split-Second Ethics: Neuroscience and Rapid Moral Decision Making funded by the program on Complex Moral Problems at Georgetown University. Publications in the field include One Minute In Haditha: Ethics and Non-Conscious Decision Making (2019) by Professor Kevin Mullaney of the US Naval Academy and Professor Regan; Legal Ethics and the Situated Lawyer (2017) by Professor Regan; Ain’t Misbehaving: Ethical Pitfalls and Rest’s Model of Moral Judgment (2017) by Professor Regan and Nancy L. Sachs; and Moral Intuitions and Organizational Culture (2007) by Professor Regan.