James Edgar Baker (born March 25, 1960) is an American attorney, judge, and academic. He is the former Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. He was appointed to the Court on September 19, 2000, by President Bill Clinton, and became its Chief Judge upon the expiration of

Andrew S. Effron Andrew Samuel Effron (born September 18, 1948) is an American lawyer who serves as a Senior judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. He took his judicial oath on August 1, 1996, and became chief judge in 2006. His term exp ...

's term on September 30, 2011. He is currently a professor of Law and Public Administration at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

and Director of the

Institute for Security Policy and Law The Institute for Security Policy and Law (SPL), formerly known as the ''Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism (INSCT)'', is a multidisciplinary research institute based in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and ...

. Baker is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.

Early life and education

Baker was born in New Haven, Connecticut and grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He graduated from Yale College with a BA in 1982 and Yale Law School with a JD in 1990.

Career

Following college, Baker served in the United States Marine Corps as an Infantry officer. He resigned from the Reserves as an Infantry officer in 2000 upon joining the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces. Judge Baker has also served as a legislative aide and Acting Chief of Staff to the late Sen.

Daniel Patrick Moynihan Daniel Patrick Moynihan (March 16, 1927 – March 26, 2003) was an American politician, diplomat and sociologist. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented New York in the United States Senate from 1977 until 2001 and served as an ...

of New York. Prior to his judgeship, Baker was a legal advisor at the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

where he provided legal advice on law enforcement, intelligence, and counter-terrorism issues, and served as counsel to delegations to various environmental negotiations. He was the Deputy Legal Advisor to the

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a na ...

from 1994 to 1997, and Counsel to the

President's Intelligence Advisory Board The President's Intelligence Advisory Board (PIAB) is an advisory body to the Executive Office of the President of the United States. According to its self-description, it "provides advice to the President concerning the quality and adequacy of ...

and Intelligence Oversight Board in 1993. From 1997 to 2000, he was a Special Assistant to President Bill Clinton and Legal Advisor to the

. At the NSC, Judge Baker advised the President, the

National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils. National sec ...

, and the

staff on national security law. On June 22, 2016, President Barack Obama appointed Baker to the Public Interest Declassification Board. Baker has previously taught at Georgetown University Law Center, the University of Iowa College of Law, Yale Law School, and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. He joined the faculty of

College of Law A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction. Law degrees Argentina In Argentina, ...

and

Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs (Maxwell School) is the professional public policy school of Syracuse University, a private research university in Syracuse, New York. The school is organized in 11 academic departments and 13 ...

as a professor of Law and Public Administration in Fall 2018. Baker was also appointed the Director of the

, succeeding William C. Banks, who founded the Institute in 2003. Baker is the Chair of the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Law and National Security, as well as member of the editorial board of the ''Journal of National Security Law & Policy'' and '' Intelligence and National Security''.

Honors and recognition

Baker is the recipient of the 1999 Colonel Nelson Drew Award, the NSC's highest honor, in recognition of his "distinguished contributions to the formation of peaceful, cooperative relationships between states, and U.S. security policy for global peace." He is a recipient of the "Director's Award", given by the

Director of Central Intelligence The director of central intelligence (DCI) was the head of the American Central Intelligence Agency from 1946 to 2005, acting as the principal intelligence advisor to the president of the United States and the United States National Security C ...

, in recognition of "superior contributions in the fields of intelligence and national security". In 2009, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College awarded Judge Baker the honorary degree of Master of Military Art and Science.

Writings

* * *

References

External links

Institute for National Security & Counterterrorism at Syracuse University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, James E. 1960 births Living people Yale Law School alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces Lawyers from New Haven, Connecticut 21st-century American judges Syracuse University faculty Georgetown University faculty University of Iowa College of Law faculty University of Pittsburgh faculty Yale Law School faculty United States Article I federal judges appointed by Bill Clinton