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Russell Spivak

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Russell Spivak is a graduate of Harvard Law School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has previously interned in the Office of the Chief Prosecutor in the Office of Military Commissions.

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Federal Law Enforcement

Foreign Actors in U.S. Courts: Beginning an Important Conversation

Russell Spivak, Benjamin Wittes   Thu, Jun 27, 2019, 10:56 AM

The question of Russian interference in the American political system is not going away. Even as the various investigations of Russian “meddling” in the 2016 election wind down, concerns about the security of the 2020 election abound. Alongside these concerns, another question has started to mature, mostly in legal circles for now: the question of Russian exploitation of the American and international legal systems.

Detention & Guantanamo

Summary: Qassim Filings on Habeas Claim

Russell Spivak   Tue, Mar 20, 2018, 11:00 AM

Khalid Ahmed Qassim, a Guantanamo Bay detainee from Yemen who made international headlines by writing in the Guardian about his hunger strike protesting his treatment, submitted multiple filings to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Feb. 22: a Joint Status Report (alongside the Department of Justice), a motion in limine, and a prehearing brief. This post will summarize each of these three filings.

Detention

Al-Alwi v. Trump: The Government Responds, Initial Hearing En Banc is Requested and Denied, and Amici Chime In

Russell Spivak   Fri, Nov 17, 2017, 4:30 PM

Guantanamo Bay detainee Moath Hamza Ahmed al-Alwi’s protracted legal battle has filled the pages of Lawfare for quite some time—see here, here, here, and here—and for good reason: Al-Alwi’s case presents delicate legal questions that touch on myriad themes in n

Military Justice

Doe v. Hagenbeck: The Second Circuit Speaks on Sexual Assault at West Point

Russell Spivak   Thu, Sep 7, 2017, 1:30 PM

Late last week, the Second Circuit issued a long-awaited opinion in Doe v. Hagenbeck. The case deals with myriad claims brought forward by a former West Point Cadet, Jane Doe, against Lt. Gen. Franklin Lee Hagenbeck and Brig. Gen. William E. Rapp, the superintendent and commandant of cadets, respectively, of the United States Military Academy at West Point. The claims stem from Jane Doe’s rape by an older male cadet, the school’s handling of the incident, and allegations of a sexually discriminatory atmosphere at the prestigious institution in upstate New York.