Charles J. Dunlap Jr. joined the Duke University Law School faculty in July 2010 where he is currently a professor of the practice of law and Executive Director of the Center on Law, Ethics and National Security. His teaching and scholarly writing focus on national security, the law of armed conflict, the use of force under international law, civil-military relations, cyberwar, the law of air and space warfare, military justice, and ethical issues related to the practice of national security law.
Dunlap retired from the Air Force in June 2010, having attained the rank of major general during a 34-year career in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps. In his capacity as Deputy Judge Advocate General spanning from May 2006 to March 2010, he assisted the Judge Advocate General in the professional supervision of more than 2,200 judge advocates, 350 civilian lawyers, 1,400 enlisted paralegals, and 500 civilians around the world.
While on active duty, Dunlap served as the senior lawyer (staff judge advocate) at Air Combat Command Headquarters at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia, at Air Education and Training Command Headquarters at Randolph Air Force Base in Texas, and at U.S. Strategic Command, Omaha, Nebraska, among other leadership posts.
Over the course of his career, he provided legal advice to commanders and civilian leaders at all levels. Dunlap was also involved in various high-profile interagency and policy matters, including his testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives concerning the Military Commissions Act of 2006.
Additionally, he served on the faculty of the Air Force Judge Advocate General’s School where he taught various civil and criminal law topics. An experienced trial lawyer, he spent two years as a military trial judge for a 22-state circuit. He served tours in the United Kingdom and Korea, and deployed for operations in the Middle East and Africa. He also led military-to-military delegations to Colombia, Uruguay, South Africa, and the Czech Republic.
A prolific author and accomplished public speaker, Dunlap’s commentaries on a wide variety of national security topics have been published in leading newspapers and military journals. His 2001 essay written for Harvard University’s Carr Center discussing “lawfare,” a concept he defines as “the use or misuse of law as a substitute for traditional military means to accomplish an operational objective,” has been highly influential among military scholars and in the broader legal academy.
Dunlap is also the author of the prize-winning essay, “The Origins of the Military Coup of 2012”, originally published in 1992, which was selected for the 40th Anniversary Edition of Parameters (Winter 2010-2011).
Dunlap’s legal scholarship has been published in the Stanford Law Review; the Yale Journal of International Affairs; Harvard Law’s National Security Journal; the Wake Forest Law Review; the Fletcher Forum of World Affairs; the University of Nebraska Law Review; the Texas Tech Law Review; Temple Law’s Journal of International & Comparative Law; the University of North Carolina’s Journal of International Law; the Connecticut Law Review; the Tennessee Law Review; and the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law; among others.
He’s also authored numerous articles and opinion pieces in a range of publications including The Atlantic, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Washington Times, the Air Force Times, Strategic Studies Quarterly, the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, Business Insider, the Journal of Genocide Research, The Hill, Small Wars Journal, as well as the blogs Lawfare and Just Security.
Dunlap founded his blog Lawfire in 2015 and has since written over 500 posts on a wide variety of subjects.
He has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Brigadier General Malham M. Wakin, USAF (Ret.) Founders Award for lifetime achievement by the International Society for Military Ethics (2022). The Francis X. McClanahan Award, St. Joseph’s University Law Alumni (2018). U.S. Air Force Outstanding Career Armed Services Attorney, Judge Advocates' Association (1992); Younger Federal Lawyer Award, Federal Bar Association (1985); Outstanding Judge Advocate of the Year, Strategic Air Command (1984); and U.S. Air Forces Europe, Outstanding Young Judge Advocate (1979).
His military decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal with oak leaf cluster, the Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters, the Meritorious Service Medal with four oak leaf clusters, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Humanitarian Service Medal; and the Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon.
Dunlap's wife, Joy, was a VP of the National Association of Broadcasters, and later a deputy director of Government Relations, for the Military Officers Association of America. Joy has served as president of Duke Campus Club and received the prestigious Order of the Emerald by the Kappa Delta sorority. Her "Speaking Joyfully" blog has won 2nd and 3rd place at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. In 2025, Joy received a bronze Selah award for her online essay "The Giveaway".
