The "Rule of Law Handbook: A Practitioner's Guide for Judge Advocates" is intended to provide a starting place for Judge Advocates deployed or being deployed to work on rule of law operations. As such, the handbook is based on assumptions about both the background knowledge of its intended audience and the operational posture of rule of law operations. The "Handbook" was developed with three over-arching themes, which reflect a combination of experience, doctrine, and the inherent limitations of any publication of this type. First, and foremost, is that coordination with other agencies is the single most important indicator of the likely success of a rule of law mission. Rule of law programs cannot successfully take place in isolation. Consequently, the "Handbook" includes extensive information about the interagency relationships necessary to any rule of law operation. Second, the "Handbook" places rule of law operations squarely within Full Spectrum Operations. In order for rule of law operations to be effective, they have to fit within the larger framework of how the US military conducts offensive and defensive operations as well as the growing stability mission. Third, the "Handbook" is an acknowledgement that there exists no "cookbook" solution to rule of law operations. Rather, the "Handbook" is designed to allow deploying Judge Advocates to think constructively and creatively about rule of law operations while providing them with a practical framework for fitting rule of law operations into the legal and operational framework for all US joint deployed operations. The book's organization reflects all three themes, covering the theory, interagency relationships, and practice of rule of law activities.

Introduction -- Defining the rule of law problem -- Key players in rule of law -- The international legal framework for rule of law operations -- The institutional and social context for the rule of law -- Planning for rule of law operations -- Fiscal considerations in rule of law operations -- Challenges to the rule of law -- Theater-specific information on rule of law: Afghanistan and Iraq -- Rule of law narratives -- Rule of law project descriptions.