Law as a Battlefield: The United States, China, and Global Escalation of Lawfare

About

Speaker: Jill Goldenziel,  Associate Professor, Marine Corps University, Quantico, Virginia

Law is increasingly being used as a weapon of war. Unable or unwilling to challenge other states militarily, states use legal strategies to weaken the enemy's legitimacy. Such "Lawfare" can be used to achieve a kinetic objective, to forestall one, to degrade the enemy's will to fight, and to shape the narrative of war. The Chinese military prioritizes Lawfare as one of the "Three Warfares" that shape its military's influence operations. Meanwhile, the United States has no similar Lawfare doctrine or strategy, even as China is forcing it to fight back.

This presentation will argue that the United States needs to develop a Lawfare strategy to combat its adversaries. It will first define the concept of Lawfare and discuss how its use has evolved and escalated in recent years. It will illustrate this phenomenon by examining three different types of Lawfare between China and the United States or its allies: international arbitration over China's claims to the Spratly Islands, China's non-uniformed maritime militias, and litigation involving the United States and Huawei.

Please join us! Coffee and tea provided. Everyone is welcome, but admittance will be on a first come–first served basis.

Contact

For more information, email the International Security Program Assistant at susan_lynch@harvard.edu.