Elizabeth (Liza) Goitein is senior director of the Brennan Center for Justice’s Liberty & National Security Program.
Goitein is a nationally-recognized expert on presidential emergency powers, government surveillance, and government secrecy. Her writing has been featured in major newspapers and magazines including the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, The Atlantic Magazine, and The New Republic, and she has appeared frequently on MSNBC, CNN, and NPR. She has testified on several occasions before the Senate and House Judiciary Committees.
Before coming to the Brennan Center, Goitein served as counsel to Senator Russ Feingold, chairman of the Constitution Subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and as a trial attorney in the Federal Programs Branch of the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. Goitein graduated from Yale Law School and clerked for the Honorable Michael Daly Hawkins on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. In 2021–22, she was a member of the inaugural class of Senior Practitioner Fellows at the University of Chicago’s Center for Effective Government.
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Reforming the Classification System: Challenges, Approaches, and Priorities
Co-Sponsored with the ABA’s Standing Committee on Law & National Security
Hudson Institute1201 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20004
International & National Security Law: Justice Scalia’s Jurisprudence and National Security
2016 National Lawyers Convention
The Mayflower Hotel1127 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Reforming the Classification System: Challenges, Approaches, and Priorities
Co-Sponsored with the ABA’s Standing Committee on Law & National Security
Our national security relies on the careful and deliberate creation, dissemination, and protection of classified...
What Are the Limits of Emergency Executive Powers?
The use of presidential emergency powers has raised controversy under administrations of both parties. President...
What Are the Limits of Emergency Executive Powers?
The use of presidential emergency powers has raised controversy under administrations of both parties. President...
International & National Security Law: Justice Scalia’s Jurisprudence and National Security
2016 National Lawyers Convention
This panel will consider Justice Scalia's legacy in national security law, revisiting his opinions in...
International & National Security Law: Justice Scalia’s Jurisprudence and National Security
2016 National Lawyers Convention
This panel will consider Justice Scalia's legacy in national security law, revisiting his opinions in...
Reforming Section 702: Should the FBI require a warrant to search its database for the communications of US persons?
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) allows the government to collect non-content metadata from communications service providers. Advocates for renewal, including members of the US intelligence community, argue that it is a critical tool for national security and failure to renew it will leave the nation vulnerable. Critics claim Section 702 creates a loophole that allows for the collection of personal information without a warrant. In this Briefcase, two experts, Glenn Gerstell and Liza Goitein, debate a key issue of reform, whether the FBI should require a warrant to search its database for the communications of US persons.