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# 2023: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-trial-counsel-2023/
- Published: 2026-10-30T05:29:16.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T05:29:16.000Z
- Description: Every one of the 225 Air Force courts-martial tried in 2023 lists at least one trial counsel of record, and the median most experienced trial counsel had 7 prior cases. 282 different trial counsel appeared that year.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Air Force

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Counsel Experience](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/counsel-experience/) › Air Force 2023

**Short answer:** Every one of the 225 Air Force courts-martial tried in 2023 lists at least one trial counsel of record, and the median most experienced trial counsel had 7 prior cases. 282 different trial counsel appeared that year. 56% of decided contested cases ended in a full acquittal (67 of 120), higher than the 45% in 2022.

Based on 225 cases · 2023 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

## A Higher Full-Acquittal Rate Than in 2022

Contested cases are those where the accused pleaded not guilty to at least one charge. In 2023, 67 of 120 decided contested cases ended in a full acquittal, a rate of 56%. The 2022 rate was 45%.

Charges also changed. Article 128b (domestic violence) appeared in 14% of 2023 cases, compared with 4% in 2022\. These records place both changes in the same year and cannot show whether they are related.

## Results Sorted by the Top Trial Counsel's Prior Cases

120 contested cases reached a verdict and list a trial counsel of record. The table sorts them by the prior-case count of the most experienced trial counsel on the government team.

Full acquittals were 59% in the 1 to 4 band (34 cases) and 64% in the 5 to 9 band (22 cases). The 10 to 19 band had 55% across 22 cases. The 20 or more band, the largest at 35 cases, had the lowest rate, 43%.

Partial acquittals, where the accused was acquitted of some charges or specifications and convicted of others, ran from 9% in the 1 to 4 band to 27% in the 10 to 19 band. The 7 cases with no experienced trial counsel are a very small group: 6 of 7 ended in a full acquittal and 1 of 7 in a partial acquittal.

Evidence, plea offers, and the division of work at trial are not in the records. The rows report outcomes only, not what experience did to them.

| Prior cases (most experienced trial counsel) | Contested cases | Full acquittal | Partial acquittal |
| -------------------------------------------- | --------------- | -------------- | ----------------- |
| No prior cases                               | 7               | 6 of 7         | 1 of 7            |
| 1 to 4                                       | 34              | 59%            | 9%                |
| 5 to 9                                       | 22              | 64%            | 23%               |
| 10 to 19                                     | 22              | 55%            | 27%               |
| 20 or more                                   | 35              | 43%            | 20%               |

## Defining Experience

Experience means the number of earlier courts-martial in this data on which a lawyer was counsel of record, on either side, in the Air Force, before that trial date. It is a count, not a grade of skill, and it misses any cases a lawyer tried before the records start.

Teams usually have more than one lawyer, and the records do not name a lead. So each case takes the count of its most experienced trial counsel of record. The page does not rate or rank lawyers.

## Spread of Experience Across Cases

The 225 cases split fairly evenly across the middle and upper bands. 65 cases (29%) had a top trial counsel with 1 to 4 prior cases, 53 (24%) had one with 5 to 9, 42 (19%) had one with 10 to 19, and 53 (24%) had one with 20 or more.

12 cases (5%) had no trial counsel of record with any earlier case in this data. The median for the year was 7.

| Prior cases (most experienced trial counsel) | Cases | Share |
| -------------------------------------------- | ----- | ----- |
| No prior cases                               | 12    | 5%    |
| 1 to 4                                       | 65    | 29%   |
| 5 to 9                                       | 53    | 24%   |
| 10 to 19                                     | 42    | 19%   |
| 20 or more                                   | 53    | 24%   |

## Trial Counsel Who Appeared in 2023

282 different trial counsel of record appear in 2023 Air Force cases. 102 of them (36%) were new to this data, with no earlier case.

Most had a small number of cases during the year. 161 appeared in 1 case and 106 in 2 to 4 cases. 13 appeared in 5 to 9 cases, and 2 appeared in 10 or more.

| Cases as trial counsel in 2023 | Lawyers |
| ------------------------------ | ------- |
| 1 case                         | 161     |
| 2 to 4 cases                   | 106     |
| 5 to 9 cases                   | 13      |
| 10 or more cases               | 2       |

## Larger Teams Were Common

All 225 cases in 2023 list at least one trial counsel of record. Of those, 94 listed 2 trial counsel of record, and another 94 listed 3 or more. Only 37 listed a single trial counsel.

The band for each case still comes from the single most experienced member of the team. A case with 3 newer lawyers and 1 lawyer with 20 or more prior cases is counted in the 20 or more band. The records do not show how the team divided the work.

## Which Side Had More Prior Cases

223 cases name lawyers for both the government and the defense. In 125 of them (56%), the most experienced defense counsel of record had more prior cases than the most experienced trial counsel. The trial counsel had more in 90 cases (40%). The rest were even.

## What the Data Covers

Counsel names in Air Force records are nearly complete from 2016\. Starting these pages two years later gives most lawyers a record of earlier cases. Different spellings of a name are merged by the Learn Your Lawyer method. Navy and Marine Corps records name counsel only from mid-2025, mostly by surname, so those services are not covered.

Trial records show the charges, pleas, findings, and sentence. They leave out the evidence, the plea terms, and conduct handled outside a court-martial. Air Force records rarely list the charges in a full acquittal and never report plea agreements.

Dates and sources for the law changes mentioned here: [UCMJ change timeline](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/ucmj-change-timeline/).

### How We Counted

Every Air Force court-martial with a trial date in 2023 (225 cases). Counsel of record are as listed in the public records.

Source: public court-martial records (Article 140a, UCMJ) in [Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/military-trial-results/), data updated October 24, 2026\. Definitions, sources, and known gaps: [how this data was built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/how-the-military-trial-results-data-was-built/). Errors: content@bodiesburied.com.

## Related Analysis

- [Counsel Experience](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/counsel-experience/) (hub)
- [Air Force Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-courts-martial/) (hub)
- [2018: Experience of Air Force Defense Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-defense-counsel-2018/)
- [2020: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-trial-counsel-2020/)
- [2021: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-trial-counsel-2021/)
- [2024: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-trial-counsel-2024/)
- [2025: Experience of Air Force Defense Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-defense-counsel-2025/)
- [2025: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-trial-counsel-2025/)
- [Air Force Defense Counsel in 2019: Prior Cases, Turnover, and Team Size](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/air-force-defense-counsel-2019/)
- [Search every case in Military Trial Results](https://www.bodiesburied.com/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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.