National Institute of Military Justice

The National Institute of Military Justice (NIMJ) affiliated with the Washington College of Law, American University on December 1, 2005. NIMJ is a District of Columbia not-for-profit corporation qualified under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. NIMJ is independent from any government entity; its directors and advisors are law professors, former military lawyers, or both. NIMJ was founded in 1991 to promote the fair administration of justice in the military system and to educate the public, press, and Congress about the military justice system.

AU Washington College of Law is pleased to partner with NIMJ as it moves forward in sponsoring programs that will educate the public, press, and Congress about the military justice system. As one of its kick-off events, NIMJ co-sponsored a program on Military Commissions with AU/WCL's Program on Law and Government that fully explored the topic of Military Commissions. The podcast of that program, as well as many others conducted since that time, can be downloaded from WCL's Podcast website searching with the term, "military."

NIMJ will continue to sponsor and present future programs that will bring together practitioners in the international community and those interested in the military justice system. During the past year alone, NIMJ sponsored a panel entitled "Civilian Defense Counsel at Courts-Martial Under Combat Conditions," as well as hosted the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces at the school to hear oral argument in a real, military appellate case as part of the Court's Project Outreach program. WCL Students authored an amicus curiae brief and presented oral argument as part of this event.

NIMJ also continues its advocacy work and filed many amicus curiae briefs this past year. Some of the briefs authored and filed include United States v. Lane, filed with the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces regarding the constitutionality of United States Senator Lindsey Graham's simultaneous service as a military judge and Colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve in relation to the Constitution's incompatibility clause, and United States v. Miller, involving the level of deference to be granted the President in rule-making governing the conduct of courts-martial. NIMJ has also filed two briefs with the Supreme Court of the United States this year, filing an amicus brief in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, as well as recently filing an amicus brief in support of a petition for a writ of certiorari in New v. Rumsfeld.

For details on this work, upcoming programs, and other current events in military justice, visit NIMJ's main website at www.nimj.org.