On April 24, 1863, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln issued “General Orders No. 100: Instructions for the Government of the Armies of the United States in the Field,” commonly known as the “Lieber Code” after its main author Francis (Franz) Lieber. The Lieber Code set out rules of conduct during hostilities for Union soldiers throughout the U.S. Civil …
A 2017 report by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Parliamentary Oversight: Parliament’s Power to Hold Government to Account, states that parliamentary oversight of governmental actions is one of the three core functions of a parliament, in addition to legislating (especially passage of the annual budget) and the representation of constituents. The report recognized that holding governments to …
At the end of October 2017, I had the pleasure of participating in the annual meeting of the American Society of Comparative Law (ASCL) both as a panelist as well as an attendee. Rebecca French, a professor at SUNY, Buffalo School of Law and panelist in one of the three plenary panel discussions, described the meeting as “amazing”- I agree with …
At the beginning of every year, many of us take a moment or two to assess the previous year and make resolutions for the next one. Here at the Law Library of Congress, we are no different; we review our products and make plans to improve them. This includes the Global Legal Monitor (GLM), an …