Rob McLaughlin is Professor of International Law at the Australian National Centre for Oceans Research and Security, Honorary Professor of Law at the Australian National University, Senior Fellow at the US Naval War College Stockton Centre for International Law, and Adjunct Professor at Charles Sturt University. Prior to taking up these appointments he was on the faculty of the College of Law at the Australian National University, and from 2012-2014 he served as the inaugural Head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime’s Maritime Crime Program.

Before becoming an academic, Rob served in the Royal Australian Navy for several decades as both a Seaman officer and a Legal officer. He served in surface units and submarines, and deployed to East Timor, Iraq, and on maritime border protection operations. As a lawyer, he served as Fleet Legal Officer, the Strategic Legal Adviser, Director of the Naval Legal Service, and Director of Operations and International Law in the Department of Defence. In a reserve capacity he continues to serve as an Assistant Inspector General of the Australian Defence Force. He holds degrees in history, law, and international relations, and earned his PhD at Cambridge. His research areas are law of the sea, maritime law enforcement, the law of armed conflict, and national security law.