How Many Prior Courts-Martial Had Air Force Defense Counsel Tried? 2024
Most Air Force courts-martial tried in 2024 listed just 1 defense counsel of record: 170 of the 221 cases that name a defense lawyer. The median prior-case count of the most experienced defense lawyer on each team was 9.
Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read
Trends › Counsel Experience › Air Force 2024
Short answer: Most Air Force courts-martial tried in 2024 listed just 1 defense counsel of record: 170 of the 221 cases that name a defense lawyer. The median prior-case count of the most experienced defense lawyer on each team was 9. Fewer cases were contested than in 2023 (45% compared with 53%), and full acquittals in contested cases that reached a verdict were 48% (42 of 88), compared with 56%.
Single-Lawyer Defense Teams Were the Norm
Of the 221 cases with a defense counsel listed, 170 named only 1 defense counsel of record. Another 44 named 2, and 7 named 3 or more.
The records list the lawyers who appeared for each side. They do not show how the work was divided, who led, or whether other lawyers helped without being listed.
Pleas and Verdicts Compared With 2023
A case is contested when the accused pleads not guilty to at least one charge, through a not-guilty plea or a mixed plea. In 2024, 45% of the 225 cases were contested. In 2023, the share was 53%.
Of the 88 contested cases that reached a verdict in 2024, 42 ended in a full acquittal, meaning not guilty on every charge. That is 48%, lower than the 56% rate in 2023. These are figures for the year as a whole, not for any lawyer.
Prior Cases, as This Page Uses the Term
This page treats experience as a single count: how many courts-martial a lawyer had already been counsel of record on in this data, for either side, in the Air Force, before the trial date. The count does not reflect skill. Work from before the records begin is not included.
When a team lists more than one lawyer, the case is grouped by whichever defense counsel of record had the most prior cases, since the records do not identify a lead. The page does not rank or rate anyone.
Most Experienced Defense Counsel: The Distribution
The median prior-case count for the most experienced defense counsel was 9. The 5 to 9 range held the most cases, 93 (42%), followed by 10 to 19 with 78 cases (35%).
There were 33 cases (15%) in the 1 to 4 range and 13 (6%) with a lawyer at 20 or more prior cases. In 4 cases (2%), no defense counsel of record on the team had a prior case in this data.
| Prior cases (most experienced defense counsel) | Cases | Share |
|---|---|---|
| No prior cases | 4 | 2% |
| 1 to 4 | 33 | 15% |
| 5 to 9 | 93 | 42% |
| 10 to 19 | 78 | 35% |
| 20 or more | 13 | 6% |
Verdict Table by Defense Experience
The table covers the 87 contested cases that reached a verdict and list a defense counsel. A partial acquittal means not guilty on at least one charge or specification but guilty on another.
The two largest groups can be shown as percentages. With 10 to 19 prior cases, 55% of cases ended in a full acquittal and 5% in a partial acquittal. With 5 to 9, it was 38% and 3%. The smaller groups are counts: 5 of 7 full acquittals with 20 or more prior cases, 2 of 8 in the 1 to 4 group, and 1 of 2 where no defense counsel had a prior case.
Small groups can shift with one verdict. The records leave out the evidence, plea offers, and who did the work, so the table reports outcomes and not any effect of experience.
| Prior cases (most experienced defense counsel) | Contested cases | Full acquittal | Partial acquittal |
|---|---|---|---|
| No prior cases | 2 | 1 of 2 | 0 of 2 |
| 1 to 4 | 8 | 2 of 8 | 3 of 8 |
| 5 to 9 | 32 | 38% | 3% |
| 10 to 19 | 38 | 55% | 5% |
| 20 or more | 7 | 5 of 7 | 0 of 7 |
Defense Lawyers Active in 2024
Cases from 2024 name 112 different defense counsel of record. Of these, 59 appeared in 2 to 4 cases during the year, 40 in a single case, 12 in 5 to 9 cases, and 1 in 10 or more.
Of the 112, 6 (5%) had no earlier case in this data. That means the records show no prior Air Force court-martial for them. It does not mean they had never tried a case.
| Cases as defense counsel in 2024 | Lawyers |
|---|---|
| 1 case | 40 |
| 2 to 4 cases | 59 |
| 5 to 9 cases | 12 |
| 10 or more cases | 1 |
Which Side Had More Prior Cases
Both sides have lawyers listed in 215 cases. The most experienced defense counsel of record had more prior cases than the most experienced trial counsel in 109 cases (51%) and fewer in 98 (46%). The rest were tied.
New Rules and Missing Information
Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. When every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence under new sentencing parameters. The records give trial dates but not offense dates, so 2024 trials mix cases under the old and new rules.
Air Force counsel names are nearly complete from 2016, and spelling variants are merged as on Learn Your Lawyer. Navy and Marine Corps records list counsel only from mid-2025, mostly by surname, so they are left out. Cases resolved by nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, or no action are not in the records. The evidence and plea terms are not described, Air Force records rarely list charges in full acquittals, and they never report plea agreements.
Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: UCMJ change timeline.
How We Counted
Every Air Force court-martial with a trial date in 2024 (225 cases). Counsel of record are as listed in the public records.
Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in Military Trial Results, data updated October 24, 2026. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: how this data was built. Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.
Related Analysis
- Counsel Experience (hub)
- Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends (hub)
- 2018: Experience of Air Force Defense Counsel of Record
- 2020: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record
- 2021: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record
- 2023: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record
- 2024: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record
- 2025: Experience of Air Force Defense Counsel of Record
- 2025: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record
- Search every case in Military Trial Results (members)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.