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# How Many Prior Courts-Martial Had Army Defense Counsel Tried? 2024
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-defense-counsel-2024/
- Published: 2026-10-30T05:29:01.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-30T05:29:01.000Z
- Description: In 2024 Army courts-martial, the median most experienced defense counsel of record had 9 prior cases, and the largest group of cases (173, or 39%) had a top defense counsel with 10 to 19. 224 different defense counsel appeared, 59 of them (26%) new to this data.
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Army

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Counsel Experience](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/counsel-experience/) › Army 2024

**Short answer:** In 2024 Army courts-martial, the median most experienced defense counsel of record had 9 prior cases, and the largest group of cases (173, or 39%) had a top defense counsel with 10 to 19\. 224 different defense counsel appeared, 59 of them (26%) new to this data. Full acquittals came in 37% of decided contested cases (46 of 124), compared with 39% in 2023.

Based on 478 cases · 2024 · Army records · data updated October 24, 2026

## 10 to 19 Prior Cases Was the Most Common Band

441 of the 478 Army cases tried in 2024 list at least one defense counsel of record. In 173 of them (39%), the most experienced defense counsel had 10 to 19 prior cases in this data. 126 cases (29%) were in the 5 to 9 band and 89 (20%) in the 1 to 4 band.

39 cases (9%) had a defense counsel of record with 20 or more prior cases. 14 cases (3%) had no defense counsel with an earlier case. The median for the year was 9.

| Prior cases (most experienced defense counsel) | Cases | Share |
| ---------------------------------------------- | ----- | ----- |
| No prior cases                                 | 14    | 3%    |
| 1 to 4                                         | 89    | 20%   |
| 5 to 9                                         | 126   | 29%   |
| 10 to 19                                       | 173   | 39%   |
| 20 or more                                     | 39    | 9%    |

## What a Prior-Case Count Means

Each lawyer's count is the number of Army courts-martial in this data where that lawyer had already been counsel of record, on either side, before the trial date. It is not a judgment of skill. Lawyers who tried cases before the data begins will have those earlier cases missing from the count.

Teams often have 2 lawyers, and the records do not identify a lead. The case is counted by the team member with the most prior cases. The page does not rate or rank lawyers.

## Contested Verdicts, Sorted by Defense Experience

A contested case has a not-guilty or mixed plea. 118 contested cases reached a verdict and list a defense counsel of record. A full acquittal is not guilty of every charge. A partial acquittal is not guilty of at least one charge or specification and guilty of another.

The 5 to 9 band had a full-acquittal rate of 53% across 34 cases. The 10 to 19 band, the largest at 56 cases, had 36% full acquittals and 45% partial acquittals. The 1 to 4 band had 22% full acquittals across 18 cases, with partial acquittals at 67%.

The smallest groups hold only a few cases. With a defense counsel of 20 or more prior cases, 2 of 9 ended in a full acquittal and 4 of 9 in a partial acquittal. The 1 case with no experienced defense counsel ended in a partial acquittal.

The evidence, plea offers, and the split of work on a team are not in the records. These rows describe outcomes, not the effect of a lawyer's experience.

| Prior cases (most experienced defense counsel) | Contested cases | Full acquittal | Partial acquittal |
| ---------------------------------------------- | --------------- | -------------- | ----------------- |
| No prior cases                                 | 1               | 0 of 1         | 1 of 1            |
| 1 to 4                                         | 18              | 22%            | 67%               |
| 5 to 9                                         | 34              | 53%            | 32%               |
| 10 to 19                                       | 56              | 36%            | 45%               |
| 20 or more                                     | 9               | 2 of 9         | 4 of 9            |

## Pleas and Acquittals Compared With 2023

27% of 2024 cases were contested, compared with 31% in 2023\. Of the contested cases that reached a verdict, 46 of 124 ended in a full acquittal (37%). The 2023 rate was 39%.

## The Defense Counsel Group

224 different defense counsel of record appear in Army cases tried in 2024\. 59 of them (26%) had no earlier case in this data.

88 appeared in 2 to 4 cases during the year, and 80 appeared in only 1\. 47 appeared in 5 to 9 cases, and 9 appeared in 10 or more.

| Cases as defense counsel in 2024 | Lawyers |
| -------------------------------- | ------- |
| 1 case                           | 80      |
| 2 to 4 cases                     | 88      |
| 5 to 9 cases                     | 47      |
| 10 or more cases                 | 9       |

## Team Size

Of the 441 cases with a defense counsel listed, 271 listed 2 defense counsel of record and 157 listed 1\. 13 listed 3 or more. A second lawyer with fewer prior cases does not change a case's band.

## Defense and Government Experience Compared

440 cases list lawyers on both sides. Comparing the most experienced lawyer of record on each side, the trial counsel had more prior cases in 223 cases (51%). The defense counsel had more in 193 (44%). The rest were tied.

## Rule Changes in Effect for Some 2024 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 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. The records give only trial dates, so 2024 trials include cases under both the old and the new rules.

## Coverage of the Records

Army counsel names are nearly complete from 2021, and the counsel pages start two years later so most lawyers have earlier cases recorded. Names written in more than one way are merged as on Learn Your Lawyer. Navy and Marine Corps records list counsel only from mid-2025, mostly by surname, and are not included.

These are cases that reached a courtroom. Nonjudicial punishment, administrative separation, and cases with no action are not in the records. The evidence and the plea terms are not described.

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

### How We Counted

Every Army court-martial with a trial date in 2024 (478 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)
- [Army Courts-Martial: Data and Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-courts-martial/) (hub)
- [2023: Experience of Army Trial Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-trial-counsel-2023/)
- [2024: Experience of Army Trial Counsel of Record](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-trial-counsel-2024/)
- [How Many Prior Courts-Martial Had Army Defense Counsel Tried? 2023](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-defense-counsel-2023/)
- [How Many Prior Courts-Martial Had Army Defense Counsel Tried? 2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-defense-counsel-2025/)
- [How Many Prior Courts-Martial Had Army Trial Counsel Tried? 2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/army-trial-counsel-2025/)
- [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/)
- [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.