Future of war series: Biological warfare and transparency on the battlefield with Robert Lawless

Continuing our future of war series, this episode dives into the legal implications of increasing transparency of the battlespace as a result of technological change; and looks at developments in biological warfare that challenge the long-standing prohibition on biological weapons at international law. We speak with Rob Lawless from the Leiber Institute, at the Westpoint Academy to hear more. 

Robert Lawless is an Associate Professor in the Department of Law at the United States Military Academy, West Point. He teaches various courses, including military law and the law of armed conflict. He is also the Research Director of the Lieber Institute for Law and Warfare and one of the editors of Articles of War.  

Professor Lawless previously spent ten years as an active-duty military officer in the U.S. Army JAG Corps., serving in several positions advising commanders on legal issues. He also spent almost three years as an Army litigator, representing both the U.S. government and individual soldiers in courts-martial and other military justice forums. 

Additional resources:

• Lieber Studies Series
• Articles of War Blog
• Professor Nasu's works on nanotechnology
• 1925 Geneva Protocol
• Biological Weapons Convention
• Sean Watts, Law-of-War Perfidy, 219 Mil L. Rev. 106 (2014)