NEWPORT -- On 19 November, 14 international participants graduated from the inaugural offering of a resident course devoted to strengthening human rights and military discipline through improvement of military justice systems.  Based on a detailed comparison of the U.S. and other military justice systems, graduates of the three-week Military Justice (MJ) course (MASL P176003) will be better able to identify and implement international best practices in military justice in their respective nations.  The new course, to be offered twice annually, was developed to complete the curriculum of the DIILS Military Law Development Program.
The MJ course provided a comprehensive overview of the U.S. military justice system and a comparative analysis of other military justice systems.  Topics included substantive and procedural due process, evidentiary practice, trial advocacy, non-judicial alternatives to courts martial, appeals, the role of judges and transparency.

Participants visited with U.S. military prosecutors, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces in Washington, D.C. and discussed military law with practitioners and subject matter experts, including an internationally respected expert on the International Criminal Court and a senior U.S. Army Military Judge.  The class also met with the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Army Assistant Judge Advocate General during their visit to the Pentagon.  Participants listed the following as highlights of the course:
- The trial procedure exercise, based on an actual case involving sexual assault.
- The opportunity to observe a court case hearing at the Federal District Court.
- The combination of classroom presentations and class visits to professional and cultural landmarks, such as Harvard Law School and the Rhode Island Crime Laboratory.
- The opportunity to compare the legal system of their own country with other legal systems and to discuss the pros and cons in real-time with classmates from those countries.