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DAFI 51-101

Air Force

THE AIR FORCE JUDGE ADVOCATE GENERAL’S (AFJAG) CORPS OPERATIONS, ACCESSIONS, AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Reviewed by Guilherme Correia, active-duty U.S. Air Force

DAFI 51-101, "THE AIR FORCE JUDGE ADVOCATE GENERAL’S (AFJAG) CORPS OPERATIONS, ACCESSIONS, AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT", is a Department of the Air Force publication, dated June 20, 2023.

Published

June 20, 2023

OPR

AF/JA

Headquarters, Department of the Air Force

Official document

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DAFI 51-101 — index record

NumberDAFI 51-101
TitleTHE AIR FORCE JUDGE ADVOCATE GENERAL’S (AFJAG) CORPS OPERATIONS, ACCESSIONS, AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
PublishedJune 20, 2023
Certified currentJune 20, 2023
Office of primary responsibilityAF/JA
Issued byHeadquarters, Department of the Air Force
Status on the indexCurrent
Last index actionIC, January 22, 2025
Source indexAir Force e-Publishing
Index last readOctober 20, 2026

Copied from Air Force e-Publishing (index). The publication itself is the authority; this page does not summarize or interpret it. Verify the current edition on the index before acting.

From the publication itself

Text below is lifted mechanically from the official PDF (114 pages, read October 20, 2026) with no editing or interpretation. Quote the document, not this page.

Purpose, in the publication’s words

This publication implements Air Force Policy Directive (AFPD) 51-1, The Air Force Judge Advocate General’s (AFJAG) Corps. It provides guidance and procedures concerning AFJAG Corps; prescribes the composition, mission and function of AFJAG Corps and its provision of legal services; details responsibilities for recruiting, supervising, training, and developing judge advocates, civilian attorneys and non-attorneys, and enlisted paralegals throughout the AFJAG Corps. It applies to the entire Department of the Air Force (DAF), including all uniformed members and civilian employees of the AFJAG Corps serving with the Regular Air Force (RegAF), United States Space Force (USSF) units, the Air Force Reserve (AFR), the Air National Guard (ANG), and combatant commands, except where noted otherwise. It does not apply to civilian personnel actions, including qualifying authority actions, of employees appointed to positions within the National Guard Bureau or Air National Guard units and organizations,

Summary of changes, as printed

This document has been revised and should be completely reviewed. Changes include (1) revising the trial and defense counsel certification process and (2) clarifying requirements associated with Special Trial Counsel and Senior Defense Counsel qualifications. A margin bar (|) indicates newly revised material.

Contents

  1. Chapter 1—ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIESp. 10
  2. Chapter 2—JUDGE ADVOCATE LEGAL OFFICES AND LEGAL SERVICESp. 19
  3. Chapter 3—RESOURCING AFJAG CORPS LEGAL SERVICESp. 23
  4. Chapter 4—JUDGE ADVOCATE RECRUITINGp. 25
  5. Chapter 5—ACCESSIONSp. 28
  6. Section 5A—Overviewp. 28
  7. Section 5B—Eligibility to be a Judge Advocatep. 28
  8. Section 5C—RegAF Judge Advocate Accessionsp. 28
  9. Section 5D—Air Reserve Component Judge Advocate Accessionsp. 41
  10. Section 5E—Competitive Category (Intra-service) Transfersp. 42
  11. Section 5F—RegAF Paralegal Retrainee Accessionsp. 43
  12. Section 5G—Air Reserve Component Paralegal Accessionsp. 44
  13. Chapter 6—JUDGE ADVOCATE DESIGNATION AND CERTIFICATIONp. 47
  14. Section 6A—Overviewp. 47
  15. Section 6B—Designations of RegAF, AFR and ANG Judge Advocatesp. 47
  16. Section 6C—Military Judge Certifications (Title 10)p. 49
  17. Section 6D—Trial and Defense Counsel Certification for RegAF Judge Advocatesp. 49
  18. Section 6E—Trial and Defense Counsel Certification for ARC Judge Advocatesp. 51
  19. Section 6F—Victims’ Counsel Certification and Designationp. 51
  20. Section 6G—Special Trial Counsel Certificationp. 52
  21. Chapter 7—CAREER LITIGATION DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMp. 55
  22. Chapter 8—WITHDRAWAL OF AUTHORITIESp. 59
  23. Section 8A—Overviewp. 59
  24. Section 8B—Withdrawal of Designation and Title 10 Certificationp. 59
  25. Section 8C—Withdrawal of Civilian Attorney Qualificationsp. 60
  26. Section 8E—Withdrawal of Paralegal AFSCp. 61
  27. Chapter 9—STAFFING CIVILIAN ATTORNEY POSITIONSp. 63
  28. Section 9A—Overview and Principlesp. 63
  29. Section 9B—Civilian Attorney Positions and Mobility Requirementsp. 64
  30. Section 9C—Civilian Attorney Qualifying Processp. 64
  31. Section 9D—Fully Competitive Hiring Proceduresp. 66
  32. Section 9F—Qualifying Authority Actionsp. 70
  33. Section 9G—Administrationp. 71
  34. Section 9H—Military Spouse Hiring Programp. 72
  35. Chapter 10—AFJAG CORPS EDUCATION AND TRAINING REQUIREMENTSp. 74
  36. Chapter 11—ASSIGNMENTSp. 82
  37. Chapter 13—INCENTIVE PROGRAMSp. 88
  38. Section 13A—Overviewp. 88
  39. Section 13B—Judge Advocate Continuation Pay Programp. 88
  40. Section 13C—Judge Advocate Student Loan Repayment Programp. 92
  41. Attachment 1—GLOSSARY OF REFERENCES AND SUPPORTING INFORMATIONp. 101
  42. Attachment 3—APPLICATION FOR INTRASERVICE TRANSFERp. 115
  43. Attachment 4—CIVILIAN ATTORNEY QUALIFICATIONSp. 116
  44. Attachment 5—VETERANS’ PREFERENCEp. 120
  45. Attachment 6—FORMAT FOR SUMMARY OF ORAL INTERVIEWp. 122
  46. Attachment 8—LENDER VERIFICATION MEMORANDUMp. 124
  47. Attachment 9—CERTIFICATION OF JUDGE ADVOCATESp. 126
  48. Attachment 10—CERTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONp. 129
All 120 contents entries
  1. Chapter 1—ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIESp. 10
  2. 1.1. Overviewp. 10
  3. 1.2. The Office of The Judge Advocate General (AF/JA)p. 10
  4. 1.3. MAJCOM, FLDCOM, and Equivalent Legal Staffsp. 15
  5. 1.4. Additional Roles and Responsibilitiesp. 17
  6. Chapter 2—JUDGE ADVOCATE LEGAL OFFICES AND LEGAL SERVICESp. 19
  7. 2.1. Overviewp. 19
  8. 2.2. Practice of Lawp. 19
  9. 2.3. Establishment, Modification, and Elimination of Legal Offices and Positionsp. 19
  10. 2.4. Judge Advocate Duty Titlesp. 19
  11. 2.5. Civilian Attorney Duty Titlesp. 20
  12. 2.6. Military Paralegal Duty Titlesp. 21
  13. 2.7. Civilian Paralegal, Administrative, and Support Duty Titlesp. 21
  14. Chapter 3—RESOURCING AFJAG CORPS LEGAL SERVICESp. 23
  15. 3.1. Overviewp. 23
  16. 3.2. General Requirementsp. 23
  17. 3.3. Specific Requirementsp. 23
  18. Chapter 4—JUDGE ADVOCATE RECRUITINGp. 25
  19. 4.1. Overviewp. 25
  20. 4.2. Special Recruiting Requirementp. 25
  21. 4.3. Law School Visitsp. 25
  22. 4.4. Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) Detachment Visitsp. 25
  23. 4.5. Alumni Engagement and National Recruiting Eventsp. 26
  24. 4.6. Internship/Externship Programp. 26
  25. 4.7. Student Volunteersp. 27
  26. Chapter 5—ACCESSIONSp. 28
  27. Section 5A—Overviewp. 28
  28. Section 5B—Eligibility to be a Judge Advocatep. 28
  29. Section 5C—RegAF Judge Advocate Accessionsp. 28
  30. 5.1. Overviewp. 28
  31. 5.2. Eligibilityp. 28
  32. 5.3. Application Proceduresp. 28
  33. 5.4. Selection Processp. 28
  34. 5.5. Withdrawal and Defermentp. 29
  35. 5.8. Direct Appointment Programp. 33
  36. 5.10. Inter-service Transferp. 40
  37. 5.11. Inter-component Transfer/Recall Programp. 40
  38. Section 5D—Air Reserve Component Judge Advocate Accessionsp. 41
  39. 5.12. Applicationp. 41
  40. 5.13. Applicant Recommendations and Interviewsp. 41
  41. 5.14. Selection Processp. 41
  42. Section 5E—Competitive Category (Intra-service) Transfersp. 42
  43. 5.15. Withdrawalp. 42
  44. 5.16. Competitive Category Transferp. 42
  45. Section 5F—RegAF Paralegal Retrainee Accessionsp. 43
  46. 5.17. Entry into the AFSCp. 43
  47. 5.18. Retraining Processp. 43
  48. Section 5G—Air Reserve Component Paralegal Accessionsp. 44
  49. 5.19. Selection to the Air Force Specialty Codep. 44
  50. 5.20. Eligibilityp. 44
  51. 5.21. Interview Requirementsp. 44
  52. 5.22. Application Processingp. 45
  53. 5.23. Coordinationp. 46
  54. 5.24. Approvalp. 46
  55. 5.25. Disapprovalp. 46
  56. Chapter 6—JUDGE ADVOCATE DESIGNATION AND CERTIFICATIONp. 47
  57. Section 6A—Overviewp. 47
  58. Section 6B—Designations of RegAF, AFR and ANG Judge Advocatesp. 47
  59. 6.1. Overviewp. 47
  60. 6.2. Initial Designationp. 47
  61. 6.3. Maintenance of Designationp. 47
  62. Section 6C—Military Judge Certifications (Title 10)p. 49
  63. Section 6D—Trial and Defense Counsel Certification for RegAF Judge Advocatesp. 49
  64. 6.4. Trial Judgesp. 49
  65. 6.5. Appellate Judgesp. 49
  66. 6.6. Military Judges in the ANGp. 49
  67. 6.7. Qualificationp. 49
  68. 6.8. Staff Judge Advocate Considerationsp. 50
  69. 6.9. Litigation Trainingp. 50
  70. 6.10. SJA Recommendationp. 50
  71. Section 6E—Trial and Defense Counsel Certification for ARC Judge Advocatesp. 51
  72. Section 6F—Victims’ Counsel Certification and Designationp. 51
  73. 6.11. Certification Ordersp. 51
  74. 6.12. AFR and ANG Judge Advocates in Title 10 Statusp. 51
  75. 6.13. ANG Judge Advocates in Title 32 or State statusp. 51
  76. 6.14. Qualificationp. 51
  77. Section 6G—Special Trial Counsel Certificationp. 52
  78. 6.15. Certificationp. 52
  79. 6.16. Designationp. 52
  80. 6.17. Qualificationsp. 52
  81. 6.18. Evaluationp. 53
  82. 6.19. Qualificationsp. 53
  83. 6.20. Evaluationp. 54
  84. Chapter 7—CAREER LITIGATION DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMp. 55
  85. 7.1. Military Justice Professional Developmentp. 55
  86. 7.2. Specialization within CLDPp. 55
  87. 7.3. Application and Assessmentp. 55
  88. 7.4. CLDP Stagesp. 55
  89. Chapter 8—WITHDRAWAL OF AUTHORITIESp. 59
  90. Section 8A—Overviewp. 59
  91. Section 8B—Withdrawal of Designation and Title 10 Certificationp. 59
  92. 8.1. Overviewp. 59
  93. 8.2. Automatic Withdrawalp. 59
  94. 8.3. Withdrawal for Causep. 59
  95. 8.4. Lack of Competencyp. 59
  96. 8.5. Withdrawal Processp. 59
  97. Section 8C—Withdrawal of Civilian Attorney Qualificationsp. 60
  98. Section 8E—Withdrawal of Paralegal AFSCp. 61
  99. Chapter 9—STAFFING CIVILIAN ATTORNEY POSITIONSp. 63
  100. Section 9A—Overview and Principlesp. 63
  101. Section 9B—Civilian Attorney Positions and Mobility Requirementsp. 64
  102. Section 9C—Civilian Attorney Qualifying Processp. 64
  103. Section 9D—Fully Competitive Hiring Proceduresp. 66
  104. Section 9F—Qualifying Authority Actionsp. 70
  105. Section 9G—Administrationp. 71
  106. Section 9H—Military Spouse Hiring Programp. 72
  107. Chapter 10—AFJAG CORPS EDUCATION AND TRAINING REQUIREMENTSp. 74
  108. Chapter 11—ASSIGNMENTSp. 82
  109. Chapter 13—INCENTIVE PROGRAMSp. 88
  110. Section 13A—Overviewp. 88
  111. Section 13B—Judge Advocate Continuation Pay Programp. 88
  112. Section 13C—Judge Advocate Student Loan Repayment Programp. 92
  113. Attachment 1—GLOSSARY OF REFERENCES AND SUPPORTING INFORMATIONp. 101
  114. Attachment 3—APPLICATION FOR INTRASERVICE TRANSFERp. 115
  115. Attachment 4—CIVILIAN ATTORNEY QUALIFICATIONSp. 116
  116. Attachment 5—VETERANS’ PREFERENCEp. 120
  117. Attachment 6—FORMAT FOR SUMMARY OF ORAL INTERVIEWp. 122
  118. Attachment 8—LENDER VERIFICATION MEMORANDUMp. 124
  119. Attachment 9—CERTIFICATION OF JUDGE ADVOCATESp. 126
  120. Attachment 10—CERTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONp. 129

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REF: DAFI 51-101, effective June 20, 2023

Air Force e-Publishing — DAFI 51-101

This is an index record, not the publication. The official PDF is the authority; verify the current edition before acting.

Reviewed by Guilherme Correia · Military Toolkit editorial

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