Understanding Trends

2024: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record

Fewer 2024 Air Force cases were contested than in 2023 (45% compared with 53%), and full acquittals came in 48% of decided contested cases (42 of 88), compared with 56% the year before. 262 different trial counsel of record appeared in the 225 cases.

Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read

Trends › Counsel Experience › Air Force 2024

Short answer: Fewer 2024 Air Force cases were contested than in 2023 (45% compared with 53%), and full acquittals came in 48% of decided contested cases (42 of 88), compared with 56% the year before. 262 different trial counsel of record appeared in the 225 cases. The median most experienced trial counsel on a case had 7 prior cases.

Based on 225 cases · 2024 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

Fewer Contested Cases in 2024

A contested case is one with a not-guilty or mixed plea. 45% of 2024 Air Force cases were contested. In 2023 the share was 53%.

Among contested cases that reached a verdict, 42 of 88 ended in a full acquittal (48%). The 2023 rate was 56%. A full acquittal means not guilty of every charge.

New Rules That Overlap These Trials

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 in a case is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters.

Both rules turn on the date of the offense. The records give only the trial date, so 2024 trials include cases under the old rules and cases under the new ones. The records cannot show whether the changes in 2024 numbers came from the new rules.

Experience as Counted Here

For each trial, a lawyer's experience is the number of earlier Air Force courts-martial in this data where that lawyer was counsel of record for either side. It is not a measure of skill. Cases tried before the records begin are not counted.

The records do not say who led a team, so a case is assigned to the band of its most experienced trial counsel of record. No lawyer is rated or ranked on this page.

Bands of Prior Cases

218 of the 225 cases list a trial counsel of record, and the median prior-case count of the top trial counsel in those cases was 7. The 1 to 4 band held the most cases, 74 (34%). The 10 to 19 band was next, with 61 cases (28%).

39 cases (18%) had a trial counsel with 20 or more prior cases, and 29 (13%) had one with 5 to 9. 15 cases (7%) had no trial counsel of record with an earlier case in this data.

Prior cases (most experienced trial counsel)	Cases	Share
No prior cases	15	7%
1 to 4	74	34%
5 to 9	29	13%
10 to 19	61	28%
20 or more	39	18%

Verdicts in Each Band

86 contested cases reached a verdict and list a trial counsel. The 20 or more band had a full-acquittal rate of 58% across 19 cases. The 5 to 9 band had 54% across 13 cases, the 10 to 19 band had 46% across 26, and the 1 to 4 band had 41% across 22.

Partial acquittals, which mean not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another, were uncommon in every band in 2024, between 5% and 9%. Of the 6 cases with no experienced trial counsel, 2 of 6 ended in a full acquittal and 0 of 6 in a partial acquittal.

Each group is small. The records do not include the evidence, the plea offers, or who handled the work, so the rows show how cases ended, not whether experience made a difference.

Prior cases (most experienced trial counsel)	Contested cases	Full acquittal	Partial acquittal
No prior cases	6	2 of 6	0 of 6
1 to 4	22	41%	9%
5 to 9	13	54%	8%
10 to 19	26	46%	8%
20 or more	19	58%	5%

The Trial Counsel Group in 2024

262 different trial counsel of record appear in 2024 Air Force trials. 100 of them (38%) had no earlier case in this data.

155 appeared in only 1 case during the year, and 100 appeared in 2 to 4. 6 appeared in 5 to 9 cases, and 1 appeared in 10 or more.

Cases as trial counsel in 2024	Lawyers
1 case	155
2 to 4 cases	100
5 to 9 cases	6
10 or more cases	1

Team Size and the Other Side

Of the 218 cases with a trial counsel listed, 101 named 2 trial counsel of record, 62 named 1, and 55 named 3 or more.

A larger team does not move a case to a higher band. Only the most experienced trial counsel of record on the team sets the band.

215 cases list lawyers on both sides. Comparing the most experienced lawyer on each side, the defense had more prior cases in 109 cases (51%) and the trial counsel had more in 98 (46%). The rest were tied.

Coverage and What Is Missing

Air Force counsel names are nearly complete from 2016, and these pages start two years later so most lawyers have earlier cases in the data. Spelling variants of a name are merged as on Learn Your Lawyer. Navy and Marine Corps records list counsel only from mid-2025, mostly by surname, so they are not part of these pages.

Offense dates, evidence, and plea terms are not in the records. Nonjudicial punishment and administrative separation are not covered. 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.

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

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.