Picture this: It is the night of 10 October 1985. Four Islamic terrorists with American blood on their hands are huddled in a grounded airplane in Sicily, Italy. They are surrounded by Italian and U.S. forces, but the two allied militaries are pointing their guns at one another, not at the terrorists.

The Judge Advocate General (TJAG) expects the daily actions of every member of the Judge Advocate Legal Services (JALS) to reflect an unwavering commitment to the highest standards of ethical conduct, founded on the premise that service to our nation is not only an honor, but a responsibility.

Your client tells you their commander is involuntarily initiating separation proceedings against them and they are worried this can lead to them being removed from the United States. They entered the Service through the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) program, have served for almost one year on active duty, and have not yet naturalized.

In the past several years, the use of explosive ordnance in urban areas has gained a high level of notoriety. This largely stems from the current wars in Syria and Yemen, and has often resulted in allegations of war crimes. Since the war in Syria began, the Syrian government’s use of “barrel bombs”—makeshift containers filled with debris and high explosives that are dropped from helicopters or cargo planes—is estimated to have caused thousands of civilian casualties.

The execution of a court-martial is analogous to a complex military operation. Inexperienced counsel often lack an adequate planning system to visualize, organize, and execute all critical tasks for each court-martial, resulting in trial delays and frustrated stakeholders. Moreover, military justice leaders often struggle to communicate their knowledge and experience in a transferable way to new counsel. 

The panel files back into the courtroom. You try to read the members’ faces, but they are as inscrutable as ever. Your supervisor gives a reassuring nod from behind the bar. You are as confident as you can be. Your cross-examination of the other side’s key witness was devastating, your closing argument was incisive, your expert witness was compelling, and your evidence was flawless. 

Advocacy matters. Effective advocacy matters more. Soldiers facing courts-martial and the loss of liberty demand it, and so too do the victims and commanders turning to the military justice system for help. However, effective trial advocacy is not a fire-and-forget mission; the military justice system and its practitioners require constant training and nurturing.