10 U.S.C. § 806 — Art. 6. Judge advocates and legal officers

submitted 70 years ago by ch. 1041 to r/title-10-ARMED-FORCES · 712 words · no verdicts yet

in plain englishAI-generated · not legal advice

This article requires judge advocates to remain qualified and licensed, provides rules for their assignments and direct communications, prevents certain conflicts of role, and permits specified civil-office assistance.

(a)(1) A service member may serve as a judge advocate only if admitted to practice before the highest court of a State, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia; currently eligible to practice there; subject to that jurisdiction’s discipline process; and compliant with its other practice requirements. (2) The four Judge Advocates General and the Marine Corps Staff Judge Advocate may suspend a judge advocate’s legal authority for noncompliance. A suspended or disbarred member may not perform legal duties. (b)(1) Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard assignments are recommended by that service’s Judge Advocate General; Marine assignments are directed by the Commandant. They must frequently inspect field military-justice administration. (2) Assignments must include enough qualified advocates to advise all commanders responsible for planning and organizing military operations and all commanders authorized to convene courts-martial. Required qualifications include paragraph (a)(1) and any additional education, expertise, or experience the responsible senior legal officer requires. (c) Convening authorities must communicate directly with their legal advisers about military justice. A command legal adviser may communicate directly with a superior or subordinate command adviser or the Judge Advocate General. (d) A person who served in a case as a preliminary hearing officer, court member, military judge, magistrate, appellate judge, or counsel in the case or a proceeding before one of them may not later be that case’s staff judge advocate or legal officer to a reviewing or convening authority. (e)(1) A judge advocate assigned or detailed to a United States civil office under section 973(b)(2)(B) may perform duties the agency requests, including representing the United States in civil and criminal cases. (2) Defense and, for the Coast Guard in the specified status, Homeland Security must regulate when reimbursement may be required as a condition of that assistance.

the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain

(a)

(1)

A member of the armed forces may only serve as a judge advocate if such member—

(A)

is admitted to the practice of law before the highest court of a State, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia;

(B)

maintains a license status that provides current eligibility to actively practice law before such court;

(C)

is subject to the disciplinary review process of the jurisdiction in which such member maintains such a license status; and

(D)

is in compliance with any other requirements of such jurisdiction to remain eligible to practice law in such jurisdiction.

(2)

The Judge Advocates General of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard and the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commandant of the Marine Corps may suspend the authority of a judge advocate of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, or Marine Corps, respectively, to perform legal duties if such judge advocate becomes noncompliant with the requirements of paragraph (1). A member of the armed forces who is suspended or disbarred from the practice of law within a jurisdiction may not perform legal duties.

(b)

(1)

The assignment for duty of judge advocates of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard shall be made upon the recommendation of the Judge Advocate General of the armed force of which they are members. The assignment for duty of judge advocates of the Marine Corps shall be made by direction of the Commandant of the Marine Corps. The Judge Advocates General, and within the Marine Corps the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commandant of the Marine Corps, or senior members of their staffs, shall make frequent inspections in the field in supervision of the administration of military justice.

(2)

The assignment for duty of judge advocates pursuant to this subsection shall include qualified judge advocates in numbers sufficient to provide legal advice to all commanders responsible for planning and organizing military operations (including commanders of and within commands assigned to a combatant command or the United States element of the North American Aerospace Defense Command as established pursuant to sections 161 and 162 of this title) and all commanders authorized to convene courts-martial under sections 822 through 824 of this title (articles 22 through 24). The qualifications of judge advocates assigned to provide legal advice to commanders under this paragraph shall include—

(A)

the qualifications set forth in subsection (a)(1); and

(B)

any additional education, expertise, or experience determined to be necessary to fulfill the requirements of this paragraph by the Judge Advocate General of the armed force concerned, or in the case of the Marine Corps, by the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commandant of the Marine Corps.

(c)

Convening authorities shall at all times communicate directly with their staff judge advocates or legal officers in matters relating to the administration of military justice; and the staff judge advocate or legal officer of any command is entitled to communicate directly with the staff judge advocate or legal officer of a superior or subordinate command, or with the Judge Advocate General.

(d)

(1)

No person who, with respect to a case, serves in a capacity specified in paragraph (2) may later serve as a staff judge advocate or legal officer to any reviewing or convening authority upon the same case.

(2)

The capacities referred to in paragraph (1) are, with respect to the case involved, any of the following:

(A)

Preliminary hearing officer, court member, military judge, military magistrate, or appellate judge.

(B)

Counsel who have acted in the same case or appeared in any proceeding before a military judge, military magistrate, preliminary hearing officer, or appellate court.

(e)

(1)

A judge advocate who is assigned or detailed to perform the functions of a civil office in the Government of the United States under section 973(b)(2)(B) of this title may perform such duties as may be requested by the agency concerned, including representation of the United States in civil and criminal cases.

(2)

The Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Navy, shall prescribe regulations providing that reimbursement may be a condition of assistance by judge advocates assigned or detailed under section 973(b)(2)(B) of this title.

Source credit: (Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 39; Pub. L. 90–179, § 1(3), Dec. 8, 1967, 81 Stat. 545; Pub. L. 90–632, § 2(2), Oct. 24, 1968, 82 Stat. 1335; Pub. L. 98–209, § 2(b), Dec. 6, 1983, 97 Stat. 1393; Pub. L. 99–661, div. A, title VIII, § 807(a), Nov. 14, 1986, 100 Stat. 3909; Pub. L. 107–296, title XVII, § 1704(b)(1), Nov. 25, 2002, 116 Stat. 2314; Pub. L. 112–239, div. A, title V, § 531(d)(1), Jan. 2, 2013, 126 Stat. 1726; Pub. L. 114–328, div. E, title LI, § 5103, Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2895; Pub. L. 119–60, div. A, title V, §§ 561(a), 562, Dec. 18, 2025, 139 Stat. 881, 882.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

1956Enacted · Act of Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041
1967Amended · Pub. L. 90-179 · 81 Stat. 545
1968Amended · Pub. L. 90-632 · 82 Stat. 1335
1983Amended · Pub. L. 98-209 · 97 Stat. 1393
1986Amended · Pub. L. 99-661 · 100 Stat. 3909
2002Amended · Pub. L. 107-296 · 116 Stat. 2314
2013Amended · Pub. L. 112-239 · 126 Stat. 1726
2016Amended · Pub. L. 114-328 · 130 Stat. 2895
2025Amended · Pub. L. 119-60 · 139 Stat. 881, 882

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by ch. 1041 on 1956-08-10.

all 0 arguments · sorted by: best

no arguments yet — make the first case