Understanding Trends

2025: Experience of Air Force Trial Counsel of Record

Of the 243 trial counsel of record in 2025 Air Force courts-martial, 98 (40%) had no earlier case in this data. In 18 of the 218 cases (8%), no one on the government team had a prior case, and the median most experienced trial counsel had 5.

Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 5 min read

Trends › Counsel Experience › Air Force 2025

Short answer: Of the 243 trial counsel of record in 2025 Air Force courts-martial, 98 (40%) had no earlier case in this data. In 18 of the 218 cases (8%), no one on the government team had a prior case, and the median most experienced trial counsel had 5. The median confinement in 2025 was 6 months, compared with 5 months in 2024.

Based on 218 cases · 2025 · Air Force records · data updated October 24, 2026

New Lawyers on the Government Side

243 different trial counsel of record appear in Air Force cases tried in 2025. For 98 of them (40%), the 2025 case was their first in this data.

Most of the 243 handled few cases during the year: 137 appeared in 1 case and 94 in 2 to 4. 11 appeared in 5 to 9 cases. 1 appeared in 10 or more.

Cases as trial counsel in 2025	Lawyers
1 case	137
2 to 4 cases	94
5 to 9 cases	11
10 or more cases	1

The Meaning of Prior Cases

A prior case is an earlier Air Force court-martial in this data where the lawyer was counsel of record, for the government or the defense, before the trial date. The count says nothing about skill, and a lawyer who tried cases before the records begin will show a lower number than the true one.

The records list teams but not a lead lawyer. Each case is therefore assigned the count of its most experienced trial counsel of record. This page does not rate or rank any lawyer.

Most Cases Had a Top Trial Counsel With 1 to 4 Prior Cases

217 of the 218 cases list a trial counsel of record. The median count for the most experienced trial counsel on those teams was 5.

90 cases (41%) were in the 1 to 4 band. 53 cases (24%) had a trial counsel with 20 or more prior cases. The 10 to 19 band held 31 cases (14%), and the 5 to 9 band held 25 (12%). The remaining 18 cases (8%) had no trial counsel with a prior case in this data.

Prior cases (most experienced trial counsel)	Cases	Share
No prior cases	18	8%
1 to 4	90	41%
5 to 9	25	12%
10 to 19	31	14%
20 or more	53	24%

How Contested Cases Ended, Band by Band

71 contested cases reached a verdict and list a trial counsel. A contested case has a not-guilty or mixed plea. A full acquittal is a not-guilty finding on every charge, and a partial acquittal is not guilty on at least one charge or specification and guilty on another.

The 1 to 4 band had a full-acquittal rate of 52% across 23 cases, and the 20 or more band had 53% across 19. The 10 to 19 band had 23% across 13 cases, with 0% partial acquittals. The smallest groups are hard to read. In the 5 to 9 band, 4 of 9 ended in a full acquittal, and among cases with no experienced trial counsel, 3 of 7 did.

With groups this small, a few cases can change a rate. The records also leave out the evidence, the plea offers, and who did the work. These rows show outcomes in each band, not an effect of experience.

Prior cases (most experienced trial counsel)	Contested cases	Full acquittal	Partial acquittal
No prior cases	7	3 of 7	0 of 7
1 to 4	23	52%	4%
5 to 9	9	4 of 9	0 of 9
10 to 19	13	23%	0%
20 or more	19	53%	5%

Number of Trial Counsel Listed

Of the 217 cases with a trial counsel, 91 listed 2 trial counsel of record. 64 listed 1, and 62 listed 3 or more. Because the band follows the most experienced lawyer on a team, adding newer lawyers does not move a case to a different band.

Defense Counsel Often Had More Prior Cases

213 cases list lawyers on both sides. The most experienced defense counsel of record had more prior cases than the most experienced trial counsel in 123 of them (58%). The trial counsel had more in 87 (41%). The remaining cases were tied.

Sentences and the Rules in Force

The median confinement in 2025 was 6 months, compared with 5 months in 2024. These are adjudged sentences, set at trial before any plea-agreement cap, clemency, or appeal.

Since December 28, 2023, special trial counsel, not commanders, decide whether to prosecute covered offenses such as sexual assault, domestic violence, and murder. For cases where every guilty finding is for an offense after December 27, 2023, the military judge sets the sentence within new sentencing parameters. Both rules depend on the offense date, which the records do not give, so 2025 trials mix old-rule and new-rule cases.

Coverage Limits

Air Force counsel names are nearly complete from 2016, and the counsel pages start two years after that. Name variants are merged the same way as on Learn Your Lawyer. Navy and Marine Corps cases are excluded because their records list counsel only from mid-2025, mostly by surname.

The records show charges, pleas, findings, and sentences. They do not show the evidence, the plea terms, or 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.

How We Counted

Every Air Force court-martial with a trial date in 2025 (218 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.