Discover new books on Goodreads

See if your friends have read any of Jack L. Goldsmith's books

Jack L. Goldsmith’s Followers (31)

Jack L. Goldsmith

Born

in Memphis, Tennessee, The United States

September 26, 1962

Website

http://www.jackgoldsmith.org/

Genre

Law, Biography, Nonfiction

edit data

Jack Landman Goldsmith III (born September 26, 1962) is a Harvard Law School professor who has written extensively in the field of international law, civil procedure, cyber law, and national security law. He has been "widely considered one of the brightest stars in the conservative legal firmament."

Goldsmith was born in 1962 in Memphis, Tennessee. His stepfather, Charles "Chuckie" O'Brien, is widely believed to have played a role in the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa.[6] Goldsmith graduated from Pine Crest School in 1980.

He was a law professor at the University of Chicago when in 2002, he joined the Bush administration as legal adviser to the General Counsel of the Department of Defense. In October 2003 he was appointed as an United States As Jack Landman Goldsmith III (born September 26, 1962) is a Harvard Law School professor who has written extensively in the field of international law, civil procedure, cyber law, and national security law. He has been "widely considered one of the brightest stars in the conservative legal firmament."

Goldsmith was born in 1962 in Memphis, Tennessee. His stepfather, Charles "Chuckie" O'Brien, is widely believed to have played a role in the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa.[6] Goldsmith graduated from Pine Crest School in 1980.

He was a law professor at the University of Chicago when in 2002, he joined the Bush administration as legal adviser to the General Counsel of the Department of Defense. In October 2003 he was appointed as an United States Assistant Attorney General, leading the Office of Legal Counsel in the Department of Justice under Attorney General John Ashcroft and Deputy Attorney General James Comey. He resigned in July 2004. He wrote a book about his experiences there called The Terror Presidency (2007).

Goldsmith graduated from Washington & Lee University with a Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude in 1984. He earned a second B.A. with first class honours, from Oxford University, in 1986, a J.D. from Yale Law School, in 1989, an M.A. from Oxford (which is not a separate degree, but an upgrading of the BA), in 1991, and a diploma from the Hague Academy of International Law in 1992. He clerked for Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from 1989 to 1990, and for Justice Anthony Kennedy of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1990 to 1991.

He was a professor at the University of Virginia Law School before going to the University of Chicago Law School. He was working there in 2002 when he first joined the administration of President George W. Bush as a political appointee.

In 2007, Goldsmith published The Terror Presidency, a memoir about his work in the Bush administration and his thoughts on the legal opinions which were promulgated by the Department of Justice in the war on terror. His discussion covers the definition of torture, the applicability of the Geneva Conventions to the war on terror and the Iraq War, the detention and trials of suspected terrorists at Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere, and wiretapping laws. He is largely sympathetic to the concerns of the Bush administration's terrorism policies. He believed that fear of another attack drove the administration to its focus on the hard power of prerogative, rather than the soft power of persuasion. In the end, he believed the fear and concentration on hard power were counterproductive, both in the war on terror and in the extension of effective executive authority.

...more

Combine Editions
Jack L. Goldsmith’s books

Average rating: 3.94 · 2,588 ratings · 299 reviews · 32 distinct works • Similar authors

	In Hoffa's Shadow: A Stepfather, a Disappearance in Detroit, and My Search for the Truth 4.13 avg rating — 1,247 ratings — published 2019 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Who Controls the Internet?: Illusions of a Borderless World 3.85 avg rating — 557 ratings — published 2006 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Terror Presidency: Law and Judgment Inside the Bush Administration 3.75 avg rating — 393 ratings — published 2007 — 13 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Power and Constraint: The Accountable Presidency After 9/11 3.69 avg rating — 120 ratings — published 2012 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Limits of International Law by Jack L. Goldsmith, Eric A. Posner 3.31 avg rating — 77 ratings — published 2005 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The United States' Defend Forward Cyber Strategy it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 2 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Crime and the Elderly: Challenge and Response: [Papers] really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1 rating — published 1976 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Police Community: Dimensions of an Occupational Subculture by Jack L. Goldsmith, Sharon S. Goldsmith 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — published 1974 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Against cyberanarchy 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The internet and the dormant commerce clause (John M. Olin Law & Economics working paper) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Jack L. Goldsmith…

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The History Book ...: BRYAN'S 50 BOOKS READ IN 2010	37	98	Dec 30, 2010 06:00AM
The History Book ...: WORLD LEGISLATURES/INTERNATIONAL THREADS	10	279	Jan 21, 2019 08:23AM
Horror Aficionados : Track the Short Fiction You've Read in 2019!	54	159	Jan 09, 2020 05:56AM
The History Book ...: * #43 (US) GEORGE WALKER BUSH (PRESIDENT) 2001 - 2009	84	429	Dec 04, 2022 06:12AM
Reading the 20th ...: Working class writing	76	100	Aug 16, 2025 03:00PM
The History Book ...: * #44 (US) BARACK OBAMA (PRESIDENT) 2009 - 2017	212	663	Mar 07, 2026 05:53AM
Nothing But Readi...: New to you Authors 2026	50	179	Jul 28, 2026 01:24PM

More…

Is this you? Let us know. If not, help out and invite Jack to Goodreads.

Jack L. Goldsmith’s Followers (31)

Jack L. Goldsmith

Combine EditionsJack L. Goldsmith’s books

Topics Mentioning This Author

Combine Editions
Jack L. Goldsmith’s books