In August 1951, the Army accepted an offer from the University of Virginia to permanently move the school. [3] The Seventh Judge Advocate Basic Course and the First Judge Advocate Advanced Course began in the fall of 1951. [3] The University of Virginia was chosen because of its proximity to Washington, D.C. and because it had the largest law library in the South at the time. [4] The Judge Advocate General`s school was first located at Clark Hall, then behind Clark Hall in what is now Kerchof Hall. [5] In 1975, JAG School moved with UVA Law School to North Grounds University. Because of the close relationship between the law school and the JAG faculty, JAG students often share courses with AVC law students, and several AVC law professors serve as JAG officers in the military. [6] Initial training within the JAG Corps consists of two phases, first a 6-week Direct Commission Course (DCC) at Fort Benning, Georgia, followed by military legal training at the JAG School. The law school building and adjacent building were designed by Hugh Stubbins & Associates with Rawlings, Wilson and Fraher. An extension of the building, designed by Bohlin, Powell, Larkin, and Cywinski in collaboration with Johnson, Craven, and Gibson, was completed in 1991.[7] [7] Despite a long period of service by army judge advocates, no effort was made to provide specialized military legal training to military lawyers prior to the outbreak of World War II. [3] In February 1942, as the responsibilities of uniformed lawyers grew in scope and complexity, specialized legal training courses for judge advocates began in Washington, D.C. In August 1942, the school moved from the National University School of Law in Washington to the University of Michigan School of Law in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Designed solely as a temporary installation, it was deactivated in 1946 during general demobilization after World War II.[3] In October 1950, another temporary school was opened at Fort Myer, Virginia, on what is now part of Arlington National Cemetery.
After completing six classes, it was decided to establish a permanent school for army lawyers. Before entering the JAG school, all Army judge advocates must graduate from the ABA-accredited law school and be admitted to practice law by the highest court of a state or federal district. Although lawyers for some judges already have experience on mission, most are directly engaged and have no previous military training or experience. The JAG School is widely regarded as the most exclusive graduate service academy in the U.S. federal government. Admission to the Army JAG Corps and subsequent JAG School is considered “highly selective” with an acceptance rate of between 4 and 7 percent. In 2017, the Army JAG Corps accepted 200 of the 4,000 applicants. [9] The JAG School has a long history of providing lawyers to the military and the federal government, particularly the federal judiciary. The Judge Advocate General`s Legal Center and School, also known as The JAG School or TJAGLCS, is a federal service academy located on the campus of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia.
[1] The Centre is accredited by the American Bar Association to award the Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Military Law. [2] The Centre trains military, civilian and international personnel in legal and managerial skills. The LL.M. The program includes courses in administrative and civil law, contract and tax law, criminal law, and national security law. [2] The school primarily serves as the U.S. Army Law School for the Basic Officer Course (OBC) for judge advocate and a graduate program for judge advocates from all service industries. It is the only law school accredited by the ABA that awards only an LL.M. and no Juris Doctor degree.
The Legal Center and School (LCS) is headed by a Brigadier General who serves as Commanding Officer, a Colonel as Chief of Staff, a Chief Warrant Officer who serves as Chief Warrant Officer and a Command Sergeant Major who serves as a Senior Advisor enlisted at the LCS and also as Commandant of the Non-Commissioned Officer Academy. The school is headed by a colonel who serves as dean, and the center is headed by a colonel who serves as director of the legal center. The school`s four academic departments are headed by lieutenant colonels. Faculty members are lieutenant colonels or majors who are licensed lawyers and are members of the Army Judge Advocate General`s Corps. Every academic department has at least one faculty member who is a judge in the Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps. In addition to the graduate course leading to the Master of Laws, the school trains new judge advocates through the Basic Officer Judge Advocate course (three courses are taken each year), provides legal training to judge advocates and other lawyers, and trains administrative warrant officers, paralegal non-commissioned officers and court reporters. [11] The School`s NCO Academy offers the Advanced Leadership Course and the Executive Course. [12] The graduate course spans a full academic year, from mid-August to mid-May.