Curtis Bradley was the William Van Alstyne Professor of Law and Professor of Public Policy Studies at Duke University, as well as a co-director for the Center for International and Comparative Law. His scholarly expertise spanned the areas of international law in the U.S. legal system, the constitutional law of foreign affairs, and federal jurisdiction, and his courses included International law, Foreign Relations Law, and Federal Courts. He was the founding co-director of Duke Law School’s Center for International and Comparative Law and serves on the executive board of Duke's Center on Law, Ethics, and National Security. From 2012-18, he served as a Reporter for the American Law Institute's Restatement project on The Foreign Relations Law of the United States. In 2016, he received a Carnegie Fellowship to support his work on comparative foreign relations law. He is currently the co-Editor-in-Chief of the American Journal of International Law.
Bradley graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1988. He then clerked for Judge David Ebel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and Justice Byron White of the U.S. Supreme Court. After his clerkships, Bradley practiced law for several years at Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C. He began teaching in 1995 at the University of Colorado School of Law, and he received tenure there in 1999. In 2000, he joined the faculty at the University of Virginia School of Law as a full professor. In 2004, he served as counselor on international law in the Legal Adviser's Office of the U.S. State Department. He was a member of the Secretary of State's Advisory Committee on International Law. Bradley joined the Duke Law faculty in 2005.
Bradley has written numerous articles concerning international law, U.S. foreign relations law, and constitutional law. His monograph, International Law in the U.S. Legal System, was published by Oxford University Press in 2013, and a second edition was published in 2015. He was the editor of the extensive Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law, published in 2019. He was also the co-author of two casebooks: Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials (Aspen Press 6th ed. 2017) (with Jack Goldsmith), and Federal Courts and the Law of Federal-State Relations (Foundation Press 9th ed. 2018) (with Peter Low and John Jeffries).
In 2021, Prof. Bradley joined the faculty of the University of Chicago as the Allen M. Singer Professor of Law.
- Foreign Relations Law
- Federal Courts
Books
- Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials (Aspen Publishers, 2003, 2d ed. 2006, 3d ed. 2009; Wolters Kluwer, 4th ed. 2011, 5th ed. 2014, 6th ed. 2017) (with Jack L. Goldsmith); (Wolters Kluwer, 7th ed. 2020) (with Jack L. Goldsmith & Ashley S. Deeks)
- International Law in the U.S. Legal System (Oxford University Press, 2013, 2d ed. 2015, 3d ed. )
- Foreign Relations Law (Edward Elgar Publishing, ) (editor)
- Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law (Oxford University Press, ) (editor)
- Federal Courts and the Law of Federal-State Relations (Foundation Press, 7th ed. 2011, 8th ed. 2014, 9th ed. ) (with others)
- Custom's Future: International Law in a Changing World (Cambridge University Press, ) (editor)
- Presidential Power Stories (Foundation Press, ) (editor with Christopher H. Schroeder)
- International Law (4th ed. ) (with others)
Articles & Essays
- Unpacking Third-Party Standing, 131 Yale Law Journal 1-77 () (with Ernest A. Young)
- Conflicting Approaches to the U.S. Common Law of Foreign Official Immunity, 115 American Journal of International Law 1-19 ()
- Article II Treaties and Signaling Theory, in The Restatement and Beyond: The Past, Present, and Future of U.S. Foreign Relations Law 123-141 (Paul B. Stephan and Sarah A. Cleveland, eds., )
- Historical Gloss, Madisonian Liquidation, and the Originalism Debate, 106 Virginia Law Review 1-72 () (with Neil Siegel)
- Introduction to “The International Legal Order and the Global Pandemic”, 114 American Journal of International Law 571-577 () (with Laurence R. Helfer)
- The Failed Transparency Regime for Executive Agreements: An Empirical and Normative Analysis, 134 Harvard Law Review 629-725 () (with others)
- The Irrepressible Functionalism in U.S. Foreign Relations Law, in Foreign Relations Law (Curtis A. Bradley ed., )
- U.S. War Powers and the Potential Benefits of Comparativism, in Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law 753-770 (Curtis A. Bradley ed., )
- What is Foreign Relations Law?, in Oxford Handbook of Comparative Foreign Relations Law 3-20 (Curtis A. Bradley ed., )
- Exiting Congressional-Executive Agreements, 67 Duke Law Journal 1615-1645 ()
- Introduction to the Symposium on the Present and Future of Foreign Official Immunity, 112 AJIL Unbound 1-3 ()
- Presidential Control Over International Law, 131 Harvard Law Review 1201-1297 () (with Jack Landman Goldsmith III)
- Treaty Exit in the United States: Insights from the United Kingdom or South Africa?, 111 AJIL Unbound 428-433 () (with Laurence R. Helfer)
- Historical Gloss, Constitutional Conventions, and the Judicial Separation of Powers, 105 Georgetown Law Journal 255-322 () (with Neil S. Siegel)
- Doing Gloss, 84 Chicago Law Review 59-80 ()
- Foreign Relations Law as a Field of Study, 111 AJIL Unbound 316-320 ()
- Introduction to Symposium on Comparative Foreign Relations Law, 111 AJIL Unbound 314-315 ()
- Customary International Law Adjudication as Common Law Adjudication, in Custom's Future: International Law in a Changing World 34-61 (Curtis A. Bradley ed., )
- Obama's AUMF Legacy, 110 American Journal of International Law 628-645 () (with Jack Goldsmith)
- Presidential War Powers as a Two-Level Dynamic: International Law, Domestic Law, and Practice-Based Legal Change, 91 New York University Law Review 689-761 () (with Jean Galbraith)
- The Supreme Court as a Filter Between International Law and American Constitutionalism, 104 California Law Review 1567-1578 ()
- After Recess: Historical Practice, Textual Ambiguity, and Constitutional Adverse Possession, Supreme Court Review 1-70 () (with Neil Siegel)
- Agora: Reflections on Zivotofsky v. Kerry: Historical Gloss, the Recognition Power, and Judicial Review, 109 AJIL Unbound 2-9 ()
- Constructed Constraint and the Constitutional Text, 64 Duke Law Journal 1213-1294 () (with Neil Siegel)
- Foreign Relations Law and the Purported Shift Away from "Exceptionalism", 128 Harvard Law Review Forum 294-304 ()
- Introduction to Agora: Reflections on Zivotofsky v. Kerry, 109 AJIL Unbound 1 () (with Carlos M. Vazquez)
- A State Preferences Account of Customary International Law Adjudication ()
- Federalism, Treaty Implementation, and Political Process: Bond v. United States, 108 American Journal of International Law 486-496 ()
- Treaty Termination and Historical Gloss, 92 Texas Law Review 773-835 ()
- Emergency Power and Two-Tiered Legality, 63 Duke Law Journal Online 1-14 ()
- Presidential Power, Historical Practice, and Legal Constraint, 113 Columbia Law Review 1097-1161 () (with Trevor W. Morrison)
- Attorney General Bradford's Opinion and the Alien Tort Statute, 106 American Journal of International Law 509-530 ()
- Foreword: The Duke Project on Custom and Law, 62 Duke Law Journal 529-533 () (with Mitu Gulati)
- Historical Gloss and the Separation of Powers, 126 Harvard Law Review 411-485 () (with Trevor W. Morrison)
- Treaty Signature, in The Oxford Guide to Treaties 208-219 (Duncan B. Hollis ed., )
- International Law and the U.S. Common Law of Foreign Official Immunity, 2010 Supreme Court Review 213-272 () (with Laurence R. Helfer)
- Judicial Oversight, Justice, and Executive Discretion Bounded by Law, in Getting to the Rule of Law 135-144 (James Fleming ed., ) (Nomos 50)
- Mandatory Versus Default Rules: How Can Customary International Law Be Improved?, 120 Yale Law Journal Online 421-454 () (with Mitu Gulati)
- Clear Statement Rules and Executive War Powers, 33 Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy 139-148 ()
- Customary International Law and Withdrawal Rights in an Age of Treaties, 21 Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law 1-30 () (with Mitu Gulati)
- Foreign Sovereign Immunity and Domestic Officer Suits, 13 Green Bag 137-151 ()
- Foreign Sovereign Immunity, Individual Officials, and Human Rights Litigation, 13 Green Bag 9-23 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- Review Essay, 104 American Journal of International Law 146-150 () (reviewing Kal Raustialla, Does The Constitution Follow The Flag? The Evolution of Territoriality in American Law (2009))
- State Action and Corporate Human Rights Liability, 85 Notre Dame Law Review 1823-1838 ()
- The United States and Human Rights Treaties: Race Relations, the Cold War, and Constitutionalism, 9 Chinese Journal of International Law 321-344 ()
- Withdrawing from International Custom, 120 Yale Law Journal 202-275 () (with Mitu Gulati)
- Introduction: The Story of Presidential Power, in Presidential Power Stories 1-20 () (with Christopher H. Schroeder)
- Self-Execution and Treaty Duality, 2008 Supreme Court Review 131-182 ()
- The Bush Administration and International Law: Too Much Lawyering and Too Little Diplomacy, 4 Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy 57-75 ()
- The Story of Ex parte Milligan: Military Trials, Enemy Combatants, and Congressional Authorization, in Presidential Power Stories 93-132 (Christopher H. Schroeder & Curtis A. Bradley eds., )
- The United States, Israel, and Unlawful Combatants, 12 Green Bag 397-411 ()
- Terror and the Law: The Limits of Judicial Reasoning in the Post-9/11 World, Foreign Affairs 132-137 () (Review Essay, Benjamin Wittes, The Law and the Long War: The Future of Justice in the Age of Terror (2008))
- Intent, Presumptions, and Non-Self-Executing Treaties, 102 American Journal of International Law 540-551 ()
- The Concept of International Delegation, 71 Law & Contemporary Problems 1-36 (Winter ) (with Judith G. Kelley)
- Sosa, Customary International Law, and the Continuing Relevance of Erie, 120 Harvard Law Review 870-936 () (with others)
- The Federal Judicial Power and the International Legal Order, 2006 Supreme Court Review 59-113 ()
- The Military Commissions Act, Habeas Corpus, and the Geneva Conventions, 101 American Journal of International Law 322-344 ()
- Unratified Treaties, Domestic Politics, and the U.S. Constitution, 48 Harvard International Law Journal 307-336 ()
- 'Missouri v. Holland', in Federalism in America: An Encyclopedia (Joseph Murbach, Ellis Katz & Troy E. Smith ed, )
- Case Comment, 'Sanchez-Llamas v. Oregon', 100 American Journal of International Law 882-888 ()
- Enforcing the Avena Decision in U.S. Courts, 30 Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy 119-125 ()
- Military Commissions and Terrorist Enemy Combatants, 2 Stanford Journal of Civil Rights & Civil Liberties 253-257 ()
- Parsing the Commander in Chief Power: Three Distinctions, 100 American Society of International Law Proceedings 331-332 ()
- Presidential Signing Statements and Executive Power, 23 Constitutional Commentary 307-364 () (with Eric A. Posner)
- Congressional Authorization and the War on Terrorism, 118 Harvard Law Review 2047-2133 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- Medellin v. Dretke: Federalism and International Law, 43 Columbia Journal of Transnational Law 667-703 () (with others)
- Rejoinder: The War on Terrorism: International Law, Clear Statement Requirements, and Constitutional Design, 118 Harvard Law Review 2683-2697 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- Executive Power Essentialism and Foreign Affairs, 102 Michigan Law Review 545-648 () (with Martin S. Flaherty)
- Federalism and the Treaty Power, 98 American Society of International Law Proceedings 341-343 ()
- International Delegations, the Structural Constitution, and Non-Self-Execution, 55 Stanford Law Review 1557-1596 ()
- The Juvenile Death Penalty and International Law, 52 Duke Law Journal 485-557 ()
- The Alien Tort Statute and Article III, 42 Virginia Journal of International Law 587-648 ()
- The Constitutional Validity of Military Commissions, 5 Green Bag 249-258 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- World War II Compensation and Foreign Relations Federalism, 20 Berkeley Journal of International Law 282-295 ()
- Chevron Deference and Foreign Affairs, 86 Virginia Law Review 649-726 ()
- Foreign Affairs and Domestic Reform, 87 Virginia Law Review 1475-1490 () (reviewing, Mary L. Dudziak, Cold War Civil Rights: Race and the Image of American Democracy (2000))
- The Costs of International Human Rights Litigation, 2 Chicago Journal of International Law 457-473 ()
- Universal Jurisdiction and U.S. Law, 2001 University of Chicago Legal Forum 323-350 ()
- Customary International Law and Private Rights of Action, 1 Chicago Journal of International Law 421-429 ()
- The Treaty Power and American Federalism, Part II, 99 Michigan Law Review 98-133 ()
- Treaties, Human Rights, and Conditional Consent, 149 Pennsylvania Law Review 339-468 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- 'Breard,' Our Dualist Constitution, and the Internationalist Conception, 51 Stanford Law Review 523-559 ()
- A New American Foreign Affairs Law?, 70 University of Colorado Law Review 1089-1107 ()
- Book Review, 93 American Journal of International Law 757-759 () (reviewing John Rogers, International Law and United States Law (1999))
- Pinochet and International Human Rights Litigation, 97 Michigan Law Review 2129-2184 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- The "Pinochet Method" and Political Accountability, 3 Green Bag 5-10 (Autumn )
- Federal Courts & the Incorporation of International Law, 111 Harvard Law Review 2260-2275 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- The Abiding Relevance of Federalism to U.S. Foreign Relations, 92 American Journal of International Law 675-679 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- The Charming Betsy Canon and Separation of Powers: Rethinking the Interpretive Role of International Law, 86 Georgetown Law Journal 479-537 ()
- The Status of Customary International Law in U.S. Courts - Before and After Erie, 26 Denver Journal of International Law & Policy 807-826 ()
- The Treaty Power and American Federalism, 97 Michigan Law Review 390-461 ()
- Customary International Law as Federal Common Law: A Critique of the Modern Position, 110 Harvard Law Review 815-876 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- Territorial Intellectual Property Rights in an Age of Globalism, 37 Virginia Journal of International Law 505-585 ()
- The Current Illegitimacy of International Human Rights Litigation, 66 Fordham Law Review 319-369 () (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
- Book Review, 34 Virginia Journal of International Law 233-244 () (reviewing Gary B. Born & David Westin, International Civil Litigation in the United States Courts (1992)) (with Jack L. Goldsmith)
Issues Edited
- Symposium: The Law and Politics of International Delegation, Law & Contemporary Problems (Winter ) (with Judith G. Kelley)
Newspaper Articles and Commentary
- Rebooting America: Foreign Relations and International Law, 40 Duke Law Magazine ()
- Trump Provided a Road Map for Stealing an Election. Next Time Could Be Worse, Washington Post ()
- Constitutional Issues Relating to the NATO Support Act, Lawfare () (with Jack Goldsmith)
- Executive Agreements: International Lawmaking Without Accountability?, Lawfare () (cross-posted on Just Security) (with others)
- The Death of Article II Treaties?, Lawfare () (cross-posted on Just Security) (with others)
- OLC’s Meaningless 'National Interests' Test for the Legality of Presidential Uses of Force, Lawfare () (with Jack Goldsmith)
- Judicial and Media Independence After the Next Attack, Lawfare () (with Neil Siegel)
- The Brexit Decision and Its Implications for U.S. Debates Over Treaty Withdrawal, Lawfare () (with Laurence Helfer)
- Don't Let Americans Sue Saudi Arabia, New York Times () (with Jack Goldsmith)
- Constitutional Conventions, the Judicial Separation of Powers, and Justice Scalia's Replacement , Balkinization () (with Neil Siegel)
- Symposium: Zivotofsky and the Pragmatic Foreign Relations Law, SCOTUSblog ()
- Republicans Fail in an Attempt at a Civics Lecture to Iranian Leaders, The Conversation ()
- Supreme Court Holds that Alien Tort Statute Does Not Apply to Conduct in Foreign Countries, 17 ASIL Insights (, at 18)
- Terrorists, Pirates, and Drug Traffickers: Customary International Law and U.S. Criminal Prosecutions, Lawfare ()
- Foreign Official Immunity in U.S. Courts Since Samantar, Lawfare ()
- Rights Case Gone Wrong: A Ruling Imperils Firms and U.S. Diplomacy, Washington Post () (with Jack Goldsmith)
- Foreign Officials and Sovereign Immunity in U.S.Courts, ASIL Insights ()
- Signing Statements: It's a President's Right, Boston Globe () (with Eric Posner)
- U.S. Announces Intent Not to Ratify International Criminal Court Treaty, ASIL Insights ()