Adam M. Smith is Director for Multilateral Affairs on the National Security Council where he works on the full spectrum of US relations with the UN system and other multilateral actors.  Previously Adam was a Senior Advisor at the Department of the Treasury where he counseled Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence principals on sanctions strategy, Iran policy, and human rights, and engaged with foreign government and private sector partners worldwide on sanctions, compliance, and cooperation.  Prior to his government service, Adam practiced law at Covington and Burling where he focused on international trade and public policy.  Earlier, he clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.  During the Obama Campaign and Transition, he assisted in vetting VP candidates and national security nominees.

Before law school, Adam was a political economist at the UN, held postings at the World Bank and the OECD, and was a visiting scholar at institutions in Africa, Europe, and South Asia.  Adam has written numerous articles and two books, After Genocide: Bringing the Devil to Justice, and, International Judicial Institutions: The Architecture of International Justice at Home and Abroad.

Adam has been a frequent lecturer on human rights and international justice, speaking before groups including the CIA, Chatham House, and the US Holocaust Museum.  He has also been a member of think tank working groups on international justice, and has been interviewed by the Economist, The New York Times, BBC, Time, and other outlets.

Adam obtained a B.A. in political science and economics from Brown, an M.Phil. in politics from Oxford, and a J.D. from Harvard where he was a Senior Editor of the Harvard International Law Journal and a Chayes International Public Service Fellow.