Privatizing Defense: Blackwater, Contractors, and American Security

As part of a series of conferences at NYU School of Law, this half day conference will examine the outsourcing phenomenon and its ramifications for American institutions, for the future of the military, and for the national security community.

The Institute for International Law and Justice at NYU School of Law will hold concurrent sessions on Private Security, Public Order: Governance and Limits. For more information on the IILJ conference, including speakers and schedule, please visit www.iilj.org.

Speakers include:

• Jim Bond, Senior Counsel, Foreign and International Law, DynCorp;
• Doug Brooks, President, International Peace Operations Association;
• Phillip Carter, Associate, McKenna, Long, & Aldridge
• Laura Dickinson, Professor, University of Connecticut Law School;
• Karen J. Greenberg, Executive Director, Center on Law and Security;
• Robert Grenier, Managing Director, Kroll, Inc.;
• Benedict Kingsbury, Director, Institute for International Law and Justice;
• David Hammond, Partner, Crowell and Moring;
• Stephen Holmes, Meyer Professor of Law; NYU School of Law;
• Scott Horton, Contributor, Harper’s Magazine;
• Tara McKelvey, Research Fellow, Center on Law and Security;
• Robert O’Harrow, Investigative Reporter, The Washington Post;
• Nir Rosen, Fellow, Center on Law and Security, NYU School of Law;
• Jeremy Scahill, Author, Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army;
• Marty Strong, Vice President, Blackwater USA;
• Paul Verkuil, Professor of Law, Cardozo School of Law.

Schedule of Events

1:45 p.m.

Introduction, Karen Greenberg

1:45-3:00 p.m.

Understanding the Need: Public and Private Capabilities

Doug Brooks, Phillip Carter, Robert O’Harrow, Martin Strong

Moderator: Benedict Kingsbury

3:00-4:15 p.m.

The Practical Side of Private Defense: Defining Success

Jim Bond, Laura Dickinson, Robert Grenier, Scott Horton

Moderator: Tara McKelvey

4:15-4:30 p.m. Coffee Break

4:30-5:45 p.m.

Managing Parameters: Moral and Legal Questions

David Hammond, Nir Rosen, Jeremy Scahill, Paul Verkuil

Moderator: Stephen Holmes