Joint Legal Services Agency and a Joint Operational Law Practice: The Services'Judge Advocates and Lawyers Move Toward the Next Century

摘要

In a time of downsizing and significant constraints on all resources, Senator SamNunn and the Administration have called on the Services to completely review roles and missions, particularly focusing on those functions, such as legal support and services, which appear duplicative. Given this mandate, the first challenge for the Services' Judge Advocates and Lawyers is to study, propose, and be prepared to implement an approach to consolidated legal services which supports the Military Departments and Our Nation. While consolidation may be realistic and effective in some areas, it may not facilitate the Services providing legal support in the operational environment of the future. The second challenge facing the Services, therefore, is to ensure that their judge advocates and lawyers can function competently and effectively in a joint operational law practice. This study discusses how the Services may address each of these challenges. Consolidation of some legal support and services may be achieved by the implementation of a Joint Legal Services Agency by 1 October 1995. The joint operational law practice may be enhanced by the development and publication of joint operational law doctrine, by providing each operational lawyer the opportunity to receive essential joint legal and non-legal training, and, by ensuring that the Services assign the best qualified and most experienced officers to joint operational law positions.