LLM in National Security & Cybersecurity Law

Director: L. Schenck


Students who choose not to write a thesis must complete National Security Law (6870) and Cybersecurity Law & Policy (6879) and Technology Foundations for Cybersecurity (6884) or National Security Law (6870) and Cybersecurity Law and Technology (6890). (Students who receive credit for Cybersecurity Law and Policy (6879) or Technology Foundations for Cybersecurity (6884) may not enroll in Cybersecurity Law and Technology (6890).)  Students must also complete 5 credits from the following classes:

  • Computer Crime (6369)
  • Constitutional Law Seminar (Cyber, Privacy, & Speech) (6399)
  • Telecommunications Law (6414)
  • Public Law Seminar (Telecommunication & Technology) (6426)
  • Computer Law (6484)
  • Law in Cyberspace (6485)
  • Information Privacy Law (6486)
  • Internet Law (6493)
  • Space Law (6548)
  • Intelligence Law (6878)
  • Artificial Intelligence Law and Policy (6881)
  • Counterintelligence Law & Policy (6883)
  • Foreign Access to US Technology (6891)
  • Selected Topics in Cybersecurity Law (6892)**
  • Disinformation, National Security, and Cybersecurity: Overview and Legal Approaches (6893)
  • Blockchain, Law, Policy, and Cybersecurity (6894)
  • Global Privacy Law and Conflict Seminar (6895)
  • Consumer Privacy and Data Protection: Regulatory Approaches (6896)
  • Cybersecurity Law Crisis Challenges: Protecting Critical Infrastructure, Risk Management, and Incident Response (6898)

and a minimum of 8 additional credits from either the courses listed above or below,* including at least 2 credits graded on the basis of a research paper. The research paper must be at least 8,000 words in length, and U.S. law school graduates must achieve a minimum grade of B+.

Students who choose to write a thesis must complete Thesis (6690-91). They must also complete National Security Law (6870) Cybersecurity Law and Policy (6879) and Technology Foundations for Cybersecurity (6884) or National Security Law (6870) and Cybersecurity Law and Technology (6890). (Students who receive credit for Cybersecurity Law and Policy (6879) or Technology Foundations for Cybersecurity (6884) may not enroll in Cybersecurity Law and Technology (6890).)  Students also must complete 5 credits from the classes listed above, and a minimum of 4 additional credits from the courses listed above or below; they are not required to complete a research paper in addition to the thesis.

*Note: Credit earned in courses offered as part of GW Law's Oxford Program may be applied toward LLM program requirements. 

Note: Students who have a background in information technology may submit a request to the program director to obtain a waiver from enrollment in Technology Foundations for Cybersecurity.

  • Professional Responsibility and Ethics (National Security) (6218)
  • Role of the Federal Prosecutor (6363)
  • Immigration Criminal Enforcement (6367)
  • Law of Separation of Powers (6384)
  • Legislation (6416)
  • Legislative Analysis and Drafting  (6418)
  • Congressional Investigations Seminar (6420)
  • Veterans Law (6423)
  • Veterans Advocacy (6428)
  • International Law (6520)
  • International Money Laundering, Corruption, and Terrorism (6521)
  • Immigration Law I (6538)
  • Refugee and Asylum Law (6540)
  • Regional Protection of Human Rights (6547)
  • Law of the Sea (6550)
  • Law of War (6552)
  • U.S. Export Control Law and Regulation (6553)
  • International Criminal Law (6554)
  • Nation Building and the Rule of the Law (6559)
  • Public International Law Seminar (6562)**
  • Human Trafficking Law (6572)
  • Legal Drafting (National Security) (6652)
  • Field Placement (6668)
  • Selected Topics in National Security Law (6869)**
  • U.S. Foreign Relations Law (6871)
  • National Security Law Seminar (6872)**
  • Military Justice (6873)
  • Comparative Military Justice (6874)
  • Counterterrorism Law (6875)
  • Homeland Security Law and Policy (6876)
  • Nuclear Nonproliferation Law and Policy (6877)
  • The Law of Emergencies: Natural Disasters, Climate Crises, Pandemics, and Beyond (6880)
  • Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (6882)
  • Transnational Security (6885)
  • Domestic Terrorism (6886)
  • Problems Trying Terrorists in Article III Courts (6887)
  • Crisis and Legal Controversy in the Central Intelligence Agency (6888)
  • Aviation Law and National Security (6889)
  • Foreign Direct Investment Law: The Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. and National Security (6897)

*Constitutional Law I (6214) and Constitutional Law II (6380) also will be available; only students with a non-U.S. law degree who plan to take the New York bar examination may count these courses toward the 14 credits required in the field.

**For 2023–2024:

  • Public International Law Seminars may include Arms Control
  • National Security Law Seminars may include Internal Investigations, Modern Politics, and the Office of the Inspector General
  • Selected Topics in National Security Law may include Law of Secrecy
  • Selected Topics in Cybersecurity Law may include Protecting Critical Infrastructure: Mitigating Cybersecurity & National Security Threats; Cybersecurity: Risk Management and Incident Response; and Cybersecurity in the United Nations

View Course Descriptions