LAW 392 - The State Secrets Privilege

The State Secrets Privilege Analysis of Supreme Court case in United States v. Reynolds (1953) that first recognized the State Secrets Privilege and its application to current SSP cases involving such issues as NSA Surveillance and the “Extraordinary RenditionÂ¿ of individuals by the United States to other countries for interrogation and likely torture (the cases of Khaled el-Masri and Maher Arar). What standards of review should be followed by federal courts? Deference, utmost deference, or a more independent judicial check? What Â¿balancing testsÂ¿ should be applied by courts to both protect state secrets and protect the rights of litigants to challenge government practices? What might Congress enact to clarify this area?