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Academic Faculty

Full Time Teaching Faculty

Curtis A. Bradley

Allen M. Singer Distinguished Service Professor of Law

Biography

Curtis Bradley’s research and teaching interests include foreign relations law, international law, and federal court jurisdiction. He has written numerous articles relating to these subjects and is the author or editor of a number of books, including Historical Gloss and Foreign Affairs: Constitutional Authority in Practice (2024), International Law in the US Legal System (3d ed. 2020), and The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law (2019). He is also the co-author of two casebooks: Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials (8th ed. 2024), and Federal Courts and the Law of Federal-State Relations (10th ed. 2022). Professor Bradley graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1988, after which he clerked for Judge Ebel on the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit and Justice White on the US Supreme Court. In 2004, he served as counselor on international law in the Legal Adviser’s Office of the US State Department. From 2012-2018, he served as a Reporter on the Restatement (Fourth) of the Foreign Relations Law of the United States, and in 2023 he began serving as a Reporter on the latest phase of this Restatement. From 2018-22, he was a co-Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of International Law.

Education and Experience

Education

Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts

J.D. 1988, magna cum laude

University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado

B.A. 1985, summa cum laude in Political Science

Professional Experience

Legal Adviser’s Office, U.S. Department of State

Counselor on International Law, January 2004 – December 2004

Covington & Burling, Washington, D.C.

Associate, October 1991 – May 1995

The Hon. Byron R. White, United States Supreme Court

Law Clerk, July 1990 – June 1991

Arnold & Porter, Denver, Colorado

Associate, September 1989 – June 1990

The Hon. David M. Ebel, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

Law Clerk, July 1988 – June 1989

Teaching Experience

University of Chicago Law School

Professor, Summer 2021 – Present
Visiting Professor, Spring 2006

Duke Law School

Professor, Summer 2005 – Summer 2021
Co-Director of Center for International and Comparative Law, Duke Law School, 2006-08, 2010-12, 2014-Present
Member of Dean’s Senior Leadership Team, Duke Law School, 2020-21
Faculty Director, Duke-Leiden Institute in Global and Transnational Law, 2017-2019
Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Duke Law School, 2007-09, 2012-14

Harvard Law School

Bemis Visiting Professor of International Law, January 2008 – May 2008

University of Virginia School of Law

Professor, Summer 2000 – Summer 2005
Visiting Professor, Summer 1999 – Spring 2000

University of Colorado School of Law

Associate Professor, Fall 1995 – Spring 1999

Publications

Books (Author)

  • Historical Gloss and Foreign Affairs: Constitutional Authority in Practice (Harvard University Press, 2024).
  • Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials (8th ed.) (Aspen Publishing, 2024) (with Ashley Deeks & Jack L. Goldsmith).www
  • Low and Jeffries' Federal Courts and the Law of Federal-State Relations 2023 Supplement (Foundation Press, 2023) (with Tara Grove, John C. Jeffries & Peter Low).
  • Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials, Supplement (2022) (with Ashley Deeks & Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • Federal Courts and the Law of Federal-State Relations (10 ed.) (Foundation Press, 2022) (with Tara Grove, John C. Jeffries & Peter Low).
  • Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials, Supplement (2022) (with Ashley Deeks & Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials (7th ed.) (Wolters Kluwer, 2020) (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Ashley Deeks).
  • International Law in the U.S. Legal System (3rd ed.) (Oxford University Press, 2020).
  • Federal courts and the law of federal-state relations (9th ed.) (Foundation Press, 2018) (with Peter Low & John C. Jeffries).

Books (Editor)

  • The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law. (Oxford University Press, 2019).
  • Foreign Relations Law. (Edward Elgar, 2019).
  • Custom's Future: International Law in a Changing World. (Cambridge University Press, 2016).
  • Presidential Power Stories. (Foundation Press, 2008) (edited with Christopher Schroeder).

Journal Articles

  • "Inherent in Nationhood: Sovereign Power and the Constitution," 92 University of Chicago Law Review __ (2025) (forthcoming).
  • "Standing and Probabilistic Injury," 122 Michigan Law Review 1557 (2024) (with Ernest A. Young). ssrn www
  • "Amendments to the Case-Zablocki Act Concerning Reporting and Publication of International Agreements and Related Regulations (U.S.)," 63 International Legal Materials 275 (2024). www
  • "Foreign Affairs, Nondelegation, and the Major Questions Doctrine \," 172 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 1743 (2024) (with Jack L. Goldsmith). www
  • "The Political Question Doctrine and International Law," 91 George Washington Law Review 1555 (2023). www
  • "State International Agreements: The United States, Canada, and Constitutional Evolution," 60 Canadian Yearbook of International Law 6 (2023). www
  • "The Rise of Nonbinding International Agreements: An Empirical, Comparative, and Normative Analysis," 90 University of Chicago Law Review 1281 (2023) (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Oona A. Hathaway). ssrn www
  • "The Real Political Question Doctrine," 75 Stanford Law Review 1031 (2023) (with Eric A. Posner). www
  • "Restating US Foreign Relations Law: Lessons from the Treaty Materials," 32 European Journal of International Law 1443 (2022) (with Edward T. Swaine). www
  • "Reassessing the Legislative Veto: The Statutory President, Foreign Affairs, and Congressional Workarounds," 13 Journal of Legal Analysis 439 (2021). www
  • "Unpacking Third-Party Standing," 131 Yale Law Journal 1 (2021) (with Ernest A. Young). www
  • "Conflicting Approaches to the U.S. Common Law of Foreign Official Immunity," 115 American Journal of International Law 1 (2021).
  • "Historical Gloss, Madisonian Liquidation, and the Originalism Debate," 106 Virginia Law Review 1 (2020) (with Neil Siegel).
  • "The Failed Transparency Regime for Executive Agreements: An Empirical and Normative Analysis," 134 Harvard Law Review 629 (2020) (with Oona A. Hathaway & Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "Exiting Congressional-Executive Agreements," 67 Duke Law Journal 1615 (2018).
  • "Presidential Control Over International Law," 131 Harvard Law Review 1201 (2018).
  • "Treaty Exit in the United States: Insights from the United Kingdom or South Africa?," 111 AJIL Unbound 428 (2017).
  • "Doing Gloss," 84 University of Chicago Law Review 59 (2017).
  • "Historical Gloss, Constitutional Convention, and the Judicial Separation of Powers," 105 Georgetown Law Journal 255 (2017) (with Neil Siegel).
  • "The Supreme Court as a Filter Between International Law and American Constitutionalism," 104 California Law Review 1567 (2016).
  • "Obama's AUMF Legacy," 110 American Journal of International Law 628 (2016) (with Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "Presidential War Powers as a Two-Level Dynamic: International Law, Domestic Law, and Practice-Based Legal Change," 91 New York University Law Review 689 (2016) (with Jean Galbraith).
  • "Constructed Constraint and the Constitutional Text," 64 Duke Law Journal 1213 (2015) (with Neil Siegel).
  • "AGORA: Reflections on Zivotofsky v. Kerry : Historical Gloss, the Recognition Power, and Judicial Review," 109 AJIL Unbound 2 (2015).
  • "Introduction to AGORA: Reflections on Zivotofsky v. Kerry," 109 AJIL Unbound 1 (2015) (with Carlos M. Vazquez).
  • "Foreign Relations Law and the Purported Shift Away From "Exceptionalism"," 128 Harvard Law Review Forum 294 (2015).
  • "Treaty Termination and Historical Gloss," 92 Texas Law Review 773 (2014).
  • "After Recess: Historical Practice, Textual Ambiguity, and Constitutional Adverse Possession," 2014 Supreme Court Review 1 (2014) (with Neil Siegel).
  • "Federalism, treaty implementation, and political process: Bond v. United States," 108 American Journal of International Law 486 (2014).
  • "Emergency Power and Two-Tiered Legality," 63 Duke Law Journal Online 1 (2013).
  • "Presidential Power, Historical Practice, and Legal Constraint," 113 Columbia Law Review 1097 (2013) (with Trevor W. Morrison).
  • "The Duke Project on Custom and Law," 62 Duke Law Journal 529 (2012) (with Mitu Gulati).
  • "Attorney General Bradford’s Opinion and the Alien Tort Statute," 106 American Journal of International Law 1 (2012).
  • "Historical Gloss and the Separation of Powers," 126 Harvard Law Review 411 (2012) (with Trevor W. Morrison).
  • "Mandatory Versus Default Rules: How Can Customary International Law Be Improved?," 120 Yale Law Journal Online 421 (2011) (with Mitu Gulati).
  • "International Law and the U.S. Common Law of Foreign Official Immunity," 2010 Supreme Court Review 213 (2011) (with Laurence R. Helfer).
  • "The United States and Human Rights Treaties: Race Relations, the Cold War, and Constitutionalism," 9 Chinese Journal of International Law 321 (2010).
  • "State Action and Corporate Human Rights Liability," 85 Notre Dame Law Review 1823 (2010).
  • "Clear Statement Rules and Executive War Powers," 33 Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy 139 (2010).
  • "Customary International Law and Withdrawal Rights in an Age of Treaties," 21 Duke Journal of Comparative and International Law 1 (2010) (with Mitu Gulati).
  • "Withdrawing From International Custom," 120 Yale Law Journal 202 (2010) (with Mitu Gulati).
  • "Foreign Sovereign Immunity and Domestic Officer Suits," 13 Green Bag 137 (2010) (with Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "The Bush Administration and International Law: Too Much Lawyering and Too Little Diplomacy," 4 Duke Journal of Constitutional Law and Public Policy 57 (2009).
  • "Foreign Sovereign Immunity, Individual Officials, and Human Rights Litigation," 13 Green Bag 9 (2009) (with Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "The United States, Israel, and Unlawful Combatants," 12 Green Bag 2d 397 (2009).
  • "Self-Execution and Treaty Duality," 2008 Supreme Court Review 131 (2008).
  • "The Concept of International Delegation," 71 Law and Contemporary Problems 1 (2008) (with Judith G. Kelley).
  • "Terror and the Law: The Limits of Judicial Reasoning in the Post-9/11 World (Review Essay)," 87 Foreign Affairs 132 (2008).
  • "Foreword," 71 Law and Contemporary Problems i (2008) (with Judith G. Kelley).
  • "Intent, Presumptions, and Non-Self-Executing Treaties," 102 American Journal of International Law 540 (2008).
  • "Unratified Treaties, Domestic Politics, and the U.S. Constitution," 48 Harvard International Law Journal 307 (2007).
  • "The Federal Judicial Power and the International Legal Order," 2006 Supreme Court Review 59 (2007).
  • "The Military Commissions Act, Habeas Corpus, and the Geneva Conventions," 101 American Journal of International Law 322 (2007).
  • "Military Commissions and Terrorist Enemy Combatants," 2 Stanford Journal of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties 253 (2006).
  • "Case Comment, Sanchez-Llamas v. Oregon," 100 American Journal of International Law 882 (2006).
  • "Parsing the Commander in Chief Power: Three Distinctions," 100 American Society of International Law Proceedings 331 (2006).
  • "SOSA, Customary International Law, and the Continuing Relevance of Erie," 120 Harvard Law Review 869 (2006) (with Jack L. Goldsmith & David H. Moore).
  • "Enforcing the Avena Decision in U.S. Courts," 30 Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy 119 (2006).
  • "Presidential Signing Statements and Executive Power," 23 Constitutional Commentary 307 (2006) (with Eric A. Posner) (Per Connie's comments, updated this entry and deleted the existing duplicate. AS 3/29/24). cu
  • "Medellin v. Dretke: Federalism and International Law," 43 Columbia Journal of Transnational Law 667 (2005) (with Lori F. Damrosch & Martin Flaherty).
  • "Executive Power Essentialism and Foreign Affairs," 102 Michigan Law Review 545 (2004) (with Martin Flaherty).
  • "Congressional Authorization and the War on Terrorism," 118 Harvard Law Review 2047 (2004) (with Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "Federalism and the Treaty Power," 98 American Society of International Law Proceedings 341 (2004).
  • "International Delegations, the Structural Constitution, and Non-Self-Execution," 55 Stanford Law Review 1557 (2003).
  • "The Juvenile Death Penalty and International Law," 52 Duke Law Journal 485 (2002).
  • "The Alien Tort Statute and Article III," 42 Virginia Journal of International Law 587 (2002).
  • "The Constitutional Validity of Military Commissions," 5 Green Bag 249 (2002) (with Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "World War II Compensation and Foreign Relations Federalism," 20 Berkeley Journal of International Law 282 (2002).
  • "Universal Jurisdiction and U.S. Law," 2001 University of Chicago Legal Forum 323 (2001).
  • "The Costs of International Human Rights Litigation," 2 Chicago Journal of International Law 457 (2001).
  • "The Treaty Power and American Federalism, Part II," 99 Michigan Law Review 98 (2000).
  • "Foreign Affairs and Domestic Reform (Book Review)," 87 Virginia Law Review 1475 (2000).
  • "‘Chevron’ Deference and Foreign Affairs," 86 Virginia Law Review 649 (2000).
  • "Treaties, Human Rights, and Conditional Consent," 149 University of Pennsylvania Law Review 399 (2000) (with Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "Customary International Law and Private Rights of Action," 1 Chicago Journal of International Law 429 (2000).
  • "Pinochet and International Human Rights Litigation," 97 Michigan Law Review 2129 (1999) (with Jack L. Goldsmith). cu
  • "A review of John Rogers, International Law and United States Law," 93 American Journal of International Law 757 (1999). www
  • "Breard, Our Dualist Constitution, and the Internationalist Conception," 52 Stanford Law Review 529 (1999).
  • "A New American Foreign Affairs Law?," 70 University of Colorado Law Review 1089 (1999).
  • "The Abiding Relevance of Federalism to U.S. Foreign Relations," 92 American Journal of International Law 675 (1998) (with Jack L. Goldsmith). cu
  • "Federal Courts and the Incorporation of International Law," 111 Harvard Law Review 2260 (1998) (with Jack L. Goldsmith). cu
  • "The Status of Customary International Law in U.S. Courts—Before and After ‘Erie’," 26 Denver Journal of International Law & Policy 807 (1998).
  • "The Treaty Power and American Federalism," 97 Michigan Law Review 390 (1998).
  • "The Charming Betsy Canon and Separation of Powers: Rethinking the Interpretive Role of International Law," 86 Georgetown Law Journal 479 (1998).
  • "The Current Illegitimacy of International Human Rights Litigation," 66 Fordham Law Review 319 (1997) (with Jack L. Goldsmith). cu
  • "Territorial Intellectual Property Rights in an Age of Globalism," 37 Virginia Journal of International Law 505 (1997).
  • "Customary International Law as Federal Common Law: A Critique of the Modern Position," 110 Harvard Law Review 815 (1997) (with Jack L. Goldsmith). cu
  • "Book Review," 34 Virginia Journal of International Law 233 (1993) (with Jack L. Goldsmith).

Book Sections

  • "The Dynamic and Sometimes Uneasy Relationship Between Foreign Relations Law and International Law," in Encounters between Foreign Relations Law and International Law: Bridges and Boundaries, Helmut P. Aust & Thomas Kleinen eds. (Oxford University Press, 2021).
  • "Article II Treaties and Signaling Theory," in The Restatement and Beyond: The Past, Present, and Future of U.S. Foreign Relations Law (Oxford University Press, 2020).
  • "U.S. War Powers and the Potential Benefits of Comparativism," in Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law, Curtis A. Bradley ed. (2019).
  • "What is Foreign Relations Law?," in The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law, Curtis A. Bradley ed. (Oxford University Press, 2019).
  • "The Irrepressible Functionalism in U.S. Foreign Relations Law," in Foreign Relations Law, Curtis A. Bradley ed. (Edward Elgar, 2019).
  • "Customary International Law Adjudication as Common Law Adjudication," in Custom's Future: International Law in a Changing World, Curtis A. Bradley ed. (Cambridge University Press, 2016).
  • "Treaty Signature," in The Oxford Guide to Treaties (Oxford University Press, 2012).
  • "The Story of Ex parte Milligan: Military Trials, Enemy Combatants, and Congressional Authorization," in Presidential Power Stories, Curtis A. Bradley & Christopher Schroeder eds. (Foundation Press, 2008).

Working Papers

  • "The Rise of Nonbinding International Agreements: An Empirical, Comparative, and Normative Analysis," (2022) (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Oona A. Hathaway). ssrn

Other Publications

  • "Transparency of International Agreements Under the Revised Case-Zablocki Act: An Assessment After Six Months," Lawfare, June 10, 2024 (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Oona A. Hathaway). www
  • "Transparency of International Agreements Under the Revised Case-Zablocki Act: An Assessment After Six Months," Just Security, June 10, 2024 (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Oona A. Hathaway). www
  • "Turkiye Halk Bankasi A.S. v. United States, Part 2: What to Do If the FSIA Does Not Apply?," Lawfare, January 13, 2023 (with Jack L. Goldsmith). www
  • "Turkiye Halk Bankasi A.S. v. United States, Part 1: The FSIA and Criminal Prosecutions," Lawfare, January 11, 2023 (with Jack L. Goldsmith). www
  • "Supreme Court to Revisit Extraterritorial Scope of Trademark Law," Transnational Litigation Blog, January 3, 2023. www
  • "Congress Mandates Sweeping Transparency Reforms for International Agreements," Just Security, December 23, 2022 (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Oona A. Hathaway). www
  • "Customary International Law’s Domestic Status: Reflections After Twenty-Five Years," Transnational Litigation Blog, April 4, 2022 (with Jack L. Goldsmith). www
  • "An Opportunity for Congress to Require Transparency of the Executive’s International Agreements," Just Security, April 21, 2021 (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Oona A. Hathaway). www
  • "Trump Provided a Road Map for Stealing an Election. Next Time Could be Worse," The Washington Post, November 30, 2020.
  • "Don’t Let Americans Sue Saudi Arabia," New York Times, April 21, 2016 (with Jack L. Goldsmith).
  • "Foreign Officials and Sovereign Immunity in U.S. Courts," ASIL Insight, March 2009.
  • "Signing Statements: It's a President's Right," Boston Globe, August 3, 2006 (with Eric A. Posner).
  • "U.S. Announces Intent Not to Ratify International Criminal Court Treaty," ASIL Insight, May 1, 2002. www

Works in Progress
  • Disfavored Supreme Court Precedent in the Lower Federal Courts (draft) (with Tara Grove)

Additional Activities

Memberships and Professional Affiliations

  • District of Columbia and Colorado Bar Associations

Awards and Honors

  • Recipient of the University of Chicago Law School’s Teaching Award, 2024
  • Recipient of the inaugural Robert E. Dalton Award for Outstanding Contribution in the Field of Foreign Relations Law for Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law (editor)
  • Recipient of Andrew Carnegie Fellowship, 2016-17
  • Recipient of Dean’s Award for Enhancement of Intellectual Life, 2012
  • Recipient of Dean’s Award for Institutional Service, 2011
  • Recipient of Dean’s Award for Faculty Collaboration, 2006

Editorial Work

  • Reporter for the American Law Institute’s Restatement (Fourth) of the Foreign Relations Law of the United States, 2012-18, 2023-present
  • Co-Editor-in-Chief, American Journal of International Law, 2018-22