The GW Law National Security Law LLM Programs, National Security Law Association, and Military Law Society hosted a conversation between Andrew Knaggs, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, and Kathleen Kedian, a Professorial Lecturer of Law who teaches Counterintelligence Law and Senior Counsel at Raytheon Company, in the Jacob Burns Moot Courtroom.
As a leader in Special Operations and Combating Terrorism, Deputy Assistant Secretary Knaggs guides the Defense Department's policies, plans, authorities, and resources related to special operations and irregular warfare, with a special emphasis on counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, unconventional warfare, information operations, and sensitive special operations.
During the discussion, Deputy Assistant Secretary Knaggs told stories about his time as an Army Green Beret after his graduation from West Point and as a law student at William & Mary School of Law, an alma mater he shares with Ms. Kedian. He spoke about his diverse experiences ranging from working as a corporate attorney and the head of his own law firm to a becoming a policy official in the Pentagon and at the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization. Deputy Assistant Secretary Knaggs shared how law school and practicing law prepared him for the policy and operational roles, as well as has helped him to appreciate and consider the similarities between policy decision making and business transactions.
The discussion concluded with audience questions.