The Red Velvet Lawyer

Exploring and Countering the Linkages between Organized Crime and Terrorism The United Nations' Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is organizing, with Qatar University College of Law, a conference in Doha over the next two days.  The conference is entitled: Exploring and Countering the Linkages between Organized Crime and Terrorism.   Panels will explore the following topics: Background on the fight against organized crime and terrorism from the UN perspective and presentation of the E4J teaching modules for tertiary education. Literature review and educational issue paper. Nexus between transnational organized crime and terrorism initiative. Preventing terrorist activities in charitable organizations. Identifying linkages. Regional frameworks. Regional linkages - Africa. Regional linkages - Asia and Europe Regional linkages - Middle East Wrap-up with recommendations.

The Dean of the Qatar University College of Law Provides a Perspective On April 16, 2018, Dr. Mohammed A Al-Khulaifi, Dean of the QU College of Law, wrote an op-ed piece for the Qatar Tribune, one of the English-language papers published in Qatar.   Entitled Terror Financing: A Crime that Requires Global Responses, Dr. Al-Khulaifi argued that regulating terror financing required a two-front approach: (1) supervising charitable contributions, and (2) preventing financial crimes or other illegal economic activities. He posed two questions: (1) What are the international standards that are designed to prevent and combat financing terrorism?, and (2) How does the State of Qatar comply with these standards? He then outlines the international framework for combating terrorism financing, including the Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of Terrorism (1937); the Convention on Offenses and Certain Other Acts Committed on Board Aircraft (1963); the International Co

Heads Down  and Do Your Own Work! That's what I tell my College of Law Students as we shift to more independent writing in my Legal Research & Writing I course.  Through Week 8, we slowly build the scaffold for this independent work with case briefs, exercises, and sample writings. Last year at this time, I was not so enthusiastic about the work ethic of my male students.  Almost half the class was not prepared to handle this challenging course in a second language.  Several students tried to close the gap with attempts at cheating.    But this year, the students are far more mature (many have jobs and families) and most of them have pretty good English-language skills.  The students with very good language skills lead discussions and set the pace.  I am very proud of Hamad, Abdullaziz (both of you), Mohammed (several of you), Awad, Amer, Fahad, Hadi, Hussein, Saoud, Walid, Khalid, and Jaber (and his "Egyptain lawyer" tutor). At the same time, each

Statement of Lawyers for Good Government Lawyers for Good Government: Congress and the American people must prevent interference with the Special Counsel investigation As an organization of more than 125,000 attorneys across the country, we (Lawyers for Good Government) are deeply concerned by recent reports that President Trump is considering firing Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and/or Special Counsel Robert Mueller. If President Trump fires Rosenstein or Mueller, or takes other actions to obstruct their investigation, Congress and the American people must take immediate action to protect the rule of law and preserve our democracy. As lawyers, we have sworn to uphold the rule of law, a key ideal on which American democracy is based. Upholding this ideal means that no one - not even the most powerful individual in our government - is above the law. Any attempt by President Trump to interfere with or terminate the Special Counsel’s investigation would be cont

Women and the Law Conference March 22, 2018 Qatar University College of Law When I graduated from law school in 1982, only 8 percent of all lawyers in the U.S. were women. Even today, less than 17 percent of all law partners are women, a number that has been sadly durable for at least a decade. I have practiced law for over 36 years, and yet the need continues to discuss gender bias in the profession and paths to success for women lawyers. The March 22 conference obviously filled that need for women lawyers practicing in the Arab Gulf. Over 160 registered for the event. Over 110 women participated.      The discussion coming out of the Women and Law Conference sponsored by Qatar University (QU) College of Law expressed concerns by both expats and Qatari women lawyers about the barriers women face to full participation in the opportunities offered by the legal profession. At the same time, the discussion showed a refreshing commitment, expressed b

Let the Experts Speak on this Topic From the beginning of the siege of Qatar, the blockading countries -- Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E., Bahrain, and Egypt -- anchored their narrative about Qatar in a way that arguably would trigger the passions of a Western audience. Qatar, they asserted, financed terrorists, sheltered terrorist leaders, and supported Islamic radical movements throughout the region.  Qatar, on the other hand, consistently denied these claims.  It also publicly condemned 2017-18 terrorist attacks in Qatif, Pakistan, Egypt, Manchester, Tehran, London, Bahrain, Somalia, Barcelona, Jeddah, Peshawar, Kabul, and Benghazi. I am in the process of writing three articles about the siege of Qatar.  I spent the week-end closely examining these allegations.  I have found two reports worth reviewing:  Country Reports on Terrorism 2016, U.S. Dept. of State (July 2017), available at https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/272488.pdf ;  Mutual Evaluation Report: Anti

Ending the Siege of Qatar At a Heritage Foundation event on January 29, 2017, Qatari Minister of State for Defense Khalid bin Mohammad al-Attiyah declared: “The only person who can solve the GCC issue is President Trump . . . . He can solve it in a phone call.” U.S.-Qatari Military-to-Military Relations, The Heritage Foundation (Jan. 29, 2018), https://www.heritage.org/defense/event/us-qatari-military-military-relations (statement at about 43 minutes in audio recording). Based on my research, I agree.  I am in the process of writing an article entitled:   "The Siege of Qatar: Applying Dispute Resolution System Design Theory to Actions Taken by the Disputing Parties in the First Nine Months of the Siege."  I will let you know when it is published.  Anyone wanting a copy of the manuscript should send me an email.