[David Kennedy, Of War and Law (2006), Princeton University Press: Princeton (2006) ISBN: 0-691-12864-2 191 pp., 18.95 USD]

In an age when global conflicts have evolved into low intensity asymmetric affairs and taken center stage, modern conceptions of both law and war are of paramount importance to our ability to make informed decisions regarding our role in these conflicts. David Kennedy’s assertions in Of War and Law are a clear description of what occurs at the modern nexus of law and war. However, in the midst of a culture awash in images of casualties piped directly into modern living rooms (something he calls the “CNN effect”) Kennedy takes on the task of providing the realignment that seems all the more vital for the reeducation of both professionals and the wider public audience alike. 

Of War and Law, starts out assaulting the traditional definition of war with the various phenomena upon which the label has been bestowed. Traditional wars of combat are contrasted with metaphorical wars, the cold war, international interventions, the 9/11 attacks, and even the notion that security is more a state of mind then a set of factual circumstances. While law is often seen as a means to avoid and constrain war, Of War and Law extirpates this notion from our minds refocusing our conception of both modern war and law. In the epilogue to Of War and Law David Kennedy states, “The hand of force animates the world of law.” It is this ultimate underpinning of law that reminds us of the intimate connection the law has with the use of force and its ultimate expression through the violence and chaos that fills our popular notion of war. It is with these thoughts that Kennedy prepares our conception of war before forging ahead to explore the relationship between war and law.

A. A Legal Context For War?

Before launching into any detailed retelling of the historical relationship between law and war Kennedy clarifies the concept of war...