Reading Room Document

President's Receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize

The Emoluments Clause of the Constitution does not bar the President from accepting the Nobel Peace Prize without congressional consent, because the Norwegian Nobel Committee is not a "King, Prince, or foreign State." The Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act does not bar the President from accepting the Nobel Peace Prize without congressional consent, because the Norwegian Nobel Committee is not a "unit of a foreign governmental authority," an "international or multinational organization whose membership is composed of any unit of foreign government," or an "agent or representative of any such unit or such organization." The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/olc/file/2009-12-07-potus-nobel/download.

December 7, 2009