Since 2007, the Lieber Society on the Law of Armed Conflict, an interest group of the American Society of International Law, has annually recognized a paper that significantly enhances the understanding and implementation of the law of war has. The Richard R. Baxter Military Prize is awarded for exceptional writing in English by an active member of the regular or reserve armed forces, regardless of nationality. 

The Prize. The winner will receive a certificate confirming that he or she has won the 2016 Lieber Society Richard R. Baxter Military Prize and a one-year membership in the American Society of International Law (ASIL). The judges may also select additional persons to receive Lieber Society Richard R. Baxter Military Prize Certificates of Merit. 

Request for Assistance. Any person receiving this Call for Papers who is aware of exceptional writing that meets the qualifications of this competition is requested to nominate the paper directly to the Lieber Society and forward this Call to the author of that paper. 

Definition of the Law of War. For this competition, the Law of War is that part of international law that regulates the conduct of armed hostilities. Papers may address any aspect of the law of war, including, but not limited to the use of force in international law; the conduct of hostilities during international and non-international armed conflicts; protected persons and protected objects; the law of weapons; rules of engagement; treatment of detainees, to include interrogation procedures; and occupation law. Papers addressing practical problems confronting members of armed forces are preferred. 

Qualifications for entering the competition. Persons submitting papers do not have to be ASIL members. They may be citizens of any nation, but they must be an active member of a nation’s regular or reserve armed forces.

Papers that may be entered. Papers submitted in this competition must be in English (or translated into English if written in another language). Paper length may not exceed 35 pages if written with single line spacing or 70 pages if written with double line spacing, including footnotes. Paper size must be either 8.5 x 11 or A4, with all margins at least one inch and at least 12 point font. Both papers that have been published and papers that have not been published will be considered for the Baxter Prize. 

Required Contact Data. All submissions must contain the following data on the author of the paper: full name and military rank or rating, current postal and e-mail addresses, and current telephone number. If a person other than the author is making the submission, it must also contain the above data for the person submitting the paper. 

Deadline for submitting papers. Papers for the 2016 competition must be received no later than Thursday, December 31, 2015. 

Use of email to submit papers. Electronic submissions in Adobe format (.pdf) or Microsoft Word (.doc) are preferred. They should be sent to Lieber Military Prize Coordinator Chris Jenks at: Cjenks[at]smu[dot]edu