George Bisharat

George Bisharat is a professor of law at Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco, where he teaches criminal procedure and practice, law and anthropology, Islamic law, and law in Middle East societies.

His research and writing focus on international legal aspects of Palestine/Israel and on U.S. policies toward the Middle East. He is also a frequent commentator for media in the U.S. and abroad, and his op-ed pieces have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, Ha'aretz, and other newspapers.

He is a member of the editorial committee of the Journal of Palestine Studies, and a board member of the Transnational Arab Research Institute.

Previously, Bisharat served as deputy Public Defender for the city of San Francisco from 1987 to 1991, and in 1989, he published the book Palestinian Lawyers and Israeli Rule: Law and Disorder in the West Bank. He has also worked with the Palestinian Legislative Council on efforts to reform and develop the Palestinian judiciary system.

Bisharat earned his B.A. in anthropology from UC-Berkeley in California and his M.A. in history from Georgetown University in Washington, DC, before going on to graduate cum laude from Harvard Law School. In 1987, he earned a PhD in Anthropology and Middle East Studies from Harvard University.