[2] Baxter served as a judge on the International Court of Justice (1979–1980), as a professor of law at Harvard University (1954 - 1979) and as an enlisted man and officer in the U.S. Army (1942–46,1948–54).

At the time of his resignation from the U.S. Army, Baxter was awarded the Legion of Merit and held the position of Chief of the International Law Branch – Office of the Judge Advocate General.

He became the leading scholar in the area of law concerning international waterways, and his advice was actively sought by the Pentagon and State Department during the Suez Crisis.

Baxter's research was published as the monograph, The Law of International Waterways and is considered the definitive work on the subject and a classic in its field.

[7] However, Baxter's nomination for the 1978 election to the ICJ was universally supported in the international law community and, as a result, the US national group at the Permanent Court of Arbitration did not honor President Carter's request.

Baxter's writings on the impact of aerial bombings on non-combatants was an impetus for the U.N. General Assembly to add additional humanitarian conventions needed to protect civilians from death and injury during armed conflicts.

[12] Although the United States did not ratify the Protocols, it has regarded important portions of them as representing customary international law binding on all nations.

As a result, Air Force operations during the Gulf and Iraq Wars were carefully planned and monitored to minimize civilian losses.