§ 827. Art. 27. Detail of trial counsel and defense counsel

(a)

(1) Trial counsel and defense counsel shall be detailed for each general and special court-martial. Assistant trial counsel and assistant and associate defense counsel may be detailed for each general and special court-martial. The Secretary concerned shall prescribe regulations providing for the manner in which counsel are detailed for such courts-martial and for the persons who are authorized to detail counsel for such courts-martial.

(2) No person who has acted as investigating officer, military judge, or court member in any case may act later as trial counsel, assistant trial counsel, or, unless expressly requested by the accused, as defense counsel or assistant or associate defense counsel in the same case. No person who has acted for the prosecution may act later in the same case for the defense, nor may any person who has acted for the defense act later in the same case for the prosecution.

(b) Trial counsel or defense counsel detailed for a general court-martial—

(1) must be a judge advocate who is a graduate of an accredited law school or is a member of the bar of a Federal court or of the highest court of a State; or must be a member of the bar of a Federal court or of the highest court of a State; and

(2) must be certified as competent to perform such duties by the Judge Advocate General of the armed force of which he is a member.

(c) In the case of a special court-martial—

(1) the accused shall be afforded the opportunity to be represented at the trial by counsel having the qualifications prescribed under section 827(b) of this title (article 27(b)) unless counsel having such qualifications cannot be obtained on account of physical conditions or military exigencies. If counsel having such qualifications cannot be obtained, the court may be convened and the trial held but the convening authority shall make a detailed written statement, to be appended to the record, stating why counsel with such qualifications could not be obtained;

(2) if the trial counsel is qualified to act as counsel before a general court-martial, the defense counsel detailed by the convening authority must be a person similarly qualified; and

(3) if the trial counsel is a judge advocate or a member of the bar of a Federal court or the highest court of a State, the defense counsel detailed by the convening authority must be one of the foregoing.

(Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 46; Pub. L. 90–179, § 1(5), Dec. 8, 1967, 81 Stat. 546; Pub. L. 90–632, § 2(10), Oct. 24, 1968, 82 Stat. 1337; Pub. L. 98–209, §§ 2(d), 3(c)(2), Dec. 6, 1983, 97 Stat. 1393, 1394.)

Historical And Revision

Historical and Revision Notes
Revised section	Source (U.S. Code)	Source (Statutes at Large)
827(a) 827(b)	50:591(a). 50:591(b).	May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 27), 64 Stat. 117.
827(c)	50:591(c).

The words, “detail” and “detailed” are substituted for the words “appoint” and “appointed” throughout the revised section, since the filling of the position involved is not appointment to an office in the constitutional sense.

In subsection (a), the word “and” is substituted for the words “together with”. The word “considers” is substituted for the word “deems”. The words “necessary or” are omitted as surplusage, since what is necessary is also appropriate. The word “may” is substituted for the word “shall”. The word “later” is substituted for the word “subsequently”.

In subsections (b) and (c), the word “must” is substituted for the word “shall”, since the clauses prescribe conditions and not commands.

In subsection (b), the word “for” is substituted for the words “in the case of”. The words “person * * * a person who is” are omitted as surplusage.

Amendments

Amendments

1983—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 98–209, § 3(c)(2)(A), designated first sentence of existing provisions as par. (1), substituted provisions requiring that trial counsel and defense counsel be detailed for each general and special court-martial, and permitting the detailing of assistant trial counsel and assistant and associate defense counsel for each general and special court-martial for provisions requiring that for each general and special court-martial the authority convening the court had to detail trial counsel and defense counsel and such assistants as he considered appropriate, and inserted provision requiring the Secretary concerned to prescribe regulations providing for the manner in which counsel are detailed for such courts-martial and for the persons who are authorized to detail counsel for such courts-martial.

Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 98–209, § 3(c)(2)(B), designated existing provision, less first sentence, as par. (2) and substituted “assistant or associate defense counsel” for “assistant defense counsel”.

Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 98–209, § 2(d)(1), substituted “judge advocate” for “judge advocate of the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps or a law specialist of the Coast Guard,”.

Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 98–209, § 2(d)(2), struck out “, or a law specialist,” after “is a judge advocate”.

1968—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 90–632, § 2(10)(A), substituted “military judge” for “law officer”.

Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 90–632, § 2(10)(B), redesignated former pars. (1) and (2) as pars. (2) and (3), respectively, and added par. (1).

1967—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 90–179 inserted reference to judge advocate of the Marine Corps and substituted reference to judge advocate of the Navy for reference to law specialist of the Navy.

Effective Date Of Amendment

Effective Date of 1983 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 98–209 effective first day of eighth calendar month beginning after Dec. 6, 1983, but amendment by section 3(c)(2) of Pub. L. 98–209 not to affect the designation or detail of a military judge or military counsel to a court-martial before that date, see section 12(a)(1), (2) of Pub. L. 98–209, set out as a note under section 801 of this title.

Effective Date of 1968 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 90–632 effective first day of tenth month following October 1968, see section 4 of Pub. L. 90–632, set out as a note under section 801 of this title.