Active Duty Military Lawyer
Active duty service members occupy a unique legal position that most civilian attorneys have never encountered. Your rights, your career, and your benefits exist inside a framework of military law, federal statute, and administrative process that operates nothing like a civilian courthouse. When something goes wrong, whether a command-directed investigation, a medical board finding, a criminal charge under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, or a dispute over disability ratings, the outcome depends heavily on whether the person advising you has actually lived inside that system. An active duty military lawyer who has worn the uniform, served as a JAG officer, and argued before military boards is not simply more credentialed. That person understands what your commander is thinking, how the board will weigh evidence, and where the system’s pressure points actually are.
Citizen Soldier Law was built from the ground up for situations exactly like yours. The firm was founded in 2013 with a specific purpose: giving legally sound, competent representation to injured and active service members who would otherwise navigate the military’s administrative machinery alone or with counsel who had never set foot inside a military installation. The team includes retired JAG lawyers, a retired Army National Guard human resources NCO, and a board-certified physician specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation. That combination is rare. It means that when a medical finding drives your case, there is a doctor on staff who can read the underlying clinical record and explain what it actually means in a disability proceeding.
Active duty service carries real stakes at every stage of a legal proceeding. A courts-martial conviction can strip a career that took decades to build. A flawed MEB finding can separate a service member from the military with the wrong disability rating, cutting benefits by thousands of dollars annually. An adverse administrative action on your record can block a promotion or a security clearance. None of these outcomes are inevitable, and none of them should be handled without someone who genuinely understands the military legal architecture.
What Sets Citizen Soldier Law Apart in Military Legal Representation
Most law firms can read a regulation. Far fewer have actually practiced under it in uniform. Citizen Soldier Law’s attorneys include retired, part-time JAG lawyers who have handled cases from inside the military justice system, not just as outside observers. The firm’s founder, Thomas Roughneen, Esq., completed his undergraduate education at Rutgers University and earned his law degree from Seton Hall University School of Law, later adding a master’s degree in international public policy from Johns Hopkins University. That academic depth is paired with direct operational military experience, including service in the New Jersey Army National Guard and deployment experience shared across a team with over one hundred years of combined military service among its attorneys and staff.
Critically, Citizen Soldier Law handles IDES, MEB, and PEB matters for all branches of service, both active duty and reserve component. The firm’s positioning here is specific: all IDES decisions are processed in Title 10 active duty settings regardless of whether a service member is active component or reserve, meaning the legal framework is identical and the firm’s competency extends across every branch. Having Dr. Alice Tzeng, M.D., a physician board-certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation, available as part of the team means that the medical record analysis that drives most disability proceedings receives expert clinical review, not just legal analysis. That distinction matters when a rating percentage or a diagnostic code is being contested before a Physical Evaluation Board. The firm also holds particular depth in National Guard and Reserve matters, and its practical experience with administrative separation boards, correction of military records, discharge upgrades, and disability compensation increases means a client working with this team gets representation that spans the full range of proceedings an active duty service member might face.
Legal Challenges Active Duty Service Members Commonly Face
- Courts-Martial Defense: Criminal charges under the UCMJ, from Article 15 proceedings through special and general courts-martial, carry consequences that range from a formal reprimand to confinement and discharge. The procedural rules governing military criminal proceedings differ substantially from civilian criminal law, and representation requires familiarity with the Manual for Courts-Martial and the specific evidentiary standards applied by military judges.
- Medical Evaluation Boards (MEB): When a service member’s medical condition may prevent continued service, the MEB process begins a chain of evaluations that ultimately determines fitness for duty. The findings from this board directly influence the PEB outcome and the disability rating that follows, making accurate medical documentation and strong legal advocacy at this stage critically important.
- Physical Evaluation Boards (PEB), Informal and Formal: The PEB determines whether a service member is fit or unfit for duty and assigns a disability rating that governs separation pay or retirement benefits. An informal PEB can be appealed to a formal board, where a service member has the right to appear and present evidence. Errors in rating, missing diagnoses, and improperly applied rating criteria are all grounds for challenge.
- Integrated Disability Evaluation System (IDES): The IDES is the joint DOD and VA process through which disability determinations are made concurrently. Navigating IDES requires understanding how DOD and VA ratings interact, how concurrent findings are applied, and what rights a service member has at each stage of the dual-track evaluation.
- Administrative Separation Actions: Involuntary separation from active duty can be initiated for a range of reasons including misconduct, substandard performance, or medical findings. These actions carry consequences for characterization of discharge, which in turn affects veterans’ benefits eligibility, civilian employment, and access to VA healthcare.
- Officer Elimination Proceedings: Officers facing elimination boards confront a distinct process from enlisted separation, with specific regulatory frameworks governing how cases are presented and what findings the board may make. Representation by counsel who understands those frameworks is not optional; it is the difference between retaining a commission and losing it.
- Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC): Active duty service members who separate with combat-related disabilities may be entitled to CRSC, which allows concurrent receipt of both military retired pay and VA disability compensation without offset. Applications require careful documentation of the combat nexus for each qualifying disability, a process that benefits from legal and medical guidance.
- Security Clearance Issues and Criminal Record Consequences: A UCMJ charge, an adverse administrative finding, or a civilian criminal matter can trigger a security clearance review that threatens a service member’s ability to continue serving in their specialty. Understanding how military and civilian criminal proceedings interact, and how to present a response to adjudicators, requires experience with both systems.
Practical Steps When You Are Facing a Military Legal Issue on Active Duty
The first practical reality for any active duty service member facing a legal proceeding is that your timeline is compressed. The military operates on its own calendar, and administrative boards, MEB referrals, and UCMJ charges each carry specific response windows that, if missed, can waive important rights. If you receive a referral to an MEB, you have a defined period to respond to preliminary findings and to request a formal board if the informal PEB does not come out in your favor. These deadlines are not flexible, and missing one does not simply delay the process; it can strip you of the ability to challenge the outcome.
When a UCMJ investigation begins or a charge is preferred against you, military defense counsel will be detailed to your case at no cost through the Judge Advocate General system. That counsel is competent and generally well-intentioned, but they carry significant caseloads and may lack the resources to devote the time your case requires. Retaining private military legal counsel is not a sign of distrust toward your detailed JAG; it is a recognition that complex cases, particularly those involving serious charges or career-ending consequences, benefit from a dedicated advocate who is not managing dozens of other cases simultaneously.
Documentation is foundational in every military legal proceeding. For medical boards, this means assembling a complete clinical record that reflects every condition, every treatment, and every limitation. Conditions that are not documented tend not to be rated. For administrative actions, it means gathering performance evaluations, awards, letters of commendation, and any witness statements that speak to your service record and character. For courts-martial defense, it means preserving any evidence that might support your position before it becomes unavailable. Whatever the proceeding, the record you build early in the process shapes the options available later.
Citizen Soldier Law handles military and disability matters nationally, which means geography does not create a barrier to representation. Service members stationed at installations across the country, or those whose cases are being processed through federal or military administrative channels, can obtain legal advice and representation without being located in New Jersey. The firm’s founding mission was specifically to provide this kind of national-scope support to service members who might otherwise lack access to competent military-law counsel.
Understanding the MEB, PEB, and IDES Process for Active Duty Service Members
The medical and physical evaluation process is one of the most consequential legal proceedings an active duty service member can face, and also one of the most misunderstood. It is not a medical procedure. It is a legal determination with financial and career consequences that can follow a service member for the rest of their life. The MEB begins when a military treatment facility provider determines that a service member’s condition may not meet military medical retention standards. That referral triggers a formal process that, if not handled carefully, can result in an unfavorable fitness finding or an inaccurately low disability rating.
One of the most common errors service members make in the MEB process is accepting the initial narrative summary as complete. The narrative summary is the document that describes the referred condition to the PEB, and it is written by military medical staff who may not be focused on capturing the full functional impact of a condition in the way that maximizes a service member’s rating. Conditions that exist alongside the primary referred condition but were not independently referred are frequently underrepresented or omitted. A service member who reviews that document only for obvious factual errors will often miss the more consequential problems with how their limitations are described.
The Physical Evaluation Board then reviews the MEB findings and makes the fitness and rating determination. An informal PEB finding that concludes a service member is unfit at a given rating percentage can be rebutted. A formal board gives the service member the right to appear with counsel, present testimony, and challenge the record. The decision made at this stage feeds directly into the final IDES outcome, which sets the disability rating that determines whether a service member separates with severance pay, is placed on the temporary disability retirement list, or receives permanent disability retirement. The difference between a rating that falls below a qualifying threshold and one that meets it can be tens of thousands of dollars and the difference between access to full military retirement benefits and walking away with a lump sum.
Questions People Ask About Active Duty Military Legal Representation
Do I have a right to retain a private lawyer for a military proceeding?
Yes. For courts-martial, you have the right to detailed military defense counsel at no cost, but you also have the right to retain private military counsel at your own expense. For administrative proceedings including MEB, PEB, and separation boards, you generally have the right to be represented by counsel. The quality and focus of representation you receive can differ significantly between a detailed JAG attorney managing a heavy caseload and private counsel devoted to your specific case.
What is the difference between an MEB and a PEB?
The MEB is the medical evaluation that documents your condition and determines whether it meets military retention standards. The PEB is the legal board that reviews the MEB findings and determines fitness for duty and, if unfit, assigns a disability rating. The MEB generates the clinical record; the PEB makes the determination that affects your benefits. Both stages are critical, and errors at the MEB level often carry forward into the PEB finding.
Can I challenge my disability rating after a PEB decision?
Yes. If you receive an informal PEB decision that you disagree with, you have the right to demand a formal board where you can appear with counsel and present your case. Beyond the formal board, options include appeals to the Physical Disability Board of Review, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records or equivalent board for your branch, and VA appeals through the Board of Veterans’ Appeals if VA ratings are involved. These avenues have different standards and timelines, and determining which path makes sense for a specific situation requires legal analysis of the record.
What happens to my disability rating if I also file a VA claim?
Under the IDES process, the VA rates your conditions concurrently with the DOD proceeding. The VA rating is used to inform the DOD disability percentage, and the IDES is designed to reduce the duplicative effort of filing separate DOD and VA claims. However, the DOD and VA rating systems apply different standards, and a condition may receive different ratings under each. Understanding how these systems interact, and how to ensure your VA claim is fully documented, requires familiarity with both frameworks.
I received a Chapter 5-17 or similar administrative discharge referral. Is that different from a courts-martial?
Yes, significantly. Administrative separation actions are not criminal proceedings and do not result in criminal conviction, but they carry serious consequences for discharge characterization, benefits eligibility, and future employment. The standards of evidence and procedural rules differ from courts-martial. However, the outcome of an administrative separation board, including the characterization of discharge and any findings made, can affect your record in lasting ways. Representation at these boards matters, even though they are not criminal courts.
Can a military lawyer help me if I was already separated and disagree with my discharge characterization?
Yes. Discharge upgrades and corrections of military records are available through the Discharge Review Board and the Board for Correction of Military Records for each branch. These boards can reconsider the characterization of service and, in some cases, modify findings that affect benefits eligibility. These proceedings require a well-prepared application that presents both the factual record and the legal basis for correction.
What if I have both a pending UCMJ matter and a medical board proceeding at the same time?
This is a more complex situation than either proceeding alone. The timing and sequencing of these proceedings can interact in ways that affect both outcomes. Findings or admissions in one proceeding can potentially surface in another. A service member facing simultaneous criminal and administrative medical proceedings needs legal counsel who understands both frameworks and can advise on how to manage the interaction between them.
Does CRSC require a separate application from my disability retirement?
Yes. Combat-Related Special Compensation is not automatically granted with a disability retirement. A separate application must be submitted to your branch’s CRSC board, and it must document the combat nexus for each qualifying disability. The process involves matching medical evidence to qualifying combat events, and conditions that were rated through the disability system but not specifically linked to combat events may not qualify without additional documentation. The application and supporting record require careful construction.
Can my security clearance be affected by a UCMJ charge even if I am acquitted?
Potentially yes. Security clearance adjudication looks at a broader pattern of conduct and underlying facts, not only at the legal outcome of criminal proceedings. An acquittal means you were not convicted, but the adjudicative guidelines used by clearance review bodies allow consideration of underlying allegations and circumstances. This makes the framing of your legal defense and the record created during UCMJ proceedings relevant not only to the criminal outcome but also to any subsequent clearance review.
I am in the Reserve component but my MEB is being processed under Title 10. Does that change anything about my representation?
No, and this is an important point. Reserve and National Guard service members whose conditions are referred through the IDES are processed through Title 10 active duty frameworks for both MEB and PEB purposes, just as active component service members are. The proceedings, standards, and rights are the same. Citizen Soldier Law specifically handles IDES matters for all branches, active duty and reserve component alike, because the legal framework governing those proceedings is identical regardless of component.
Military Legal Representation Across the Country
Citizen Soldier Law’s military and disability practice is national in scope. Service members stationed at installations in the Southeast, across the mid-Atlantic, in the Midwest, and on the West Coast have access to the same legal counsel and physician support. The firm actively serves clients throughout New Jersey, including those connected to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and the various National Guard units headquartered throughout the state, in communities including Trenton, Newark, Camden, Toms River, Atlantic City, Edison, Woodbridge, Parsippany, Morristown, and Hackensack. Beyond New Jersey, the firm extends its military and disability representation to service members across New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and throughout the broader northeastern region. For IDES, MEB, PEB, and records correction matters, geography is not a limiting factor, and clients from across the United States have consulted with the firm for advice and representation in federal military administrative proceedings that are processed at the national level regardless of where a service member is stationed.
Speak With an Active Duty Military Attorney About Your Situation
The military legal system rewards preparation and rewards experience. A service member who enters an MEB, a PEB, a formal separation board, or a courts-martial without competent representation is navigating a system that has been developed and refined by people who practice in it every day. Citizen Soldier Law provides access to attorneys who have practiced inside that system as JAG officers, who understand how military boards approach evidence and credibility, and who have the physician support to handle medical record analysis that most law firms simply cannot provide. If you are on active duty and facing any legal proceeding that could affect your career, your record, or your benefits, reach out to Citizen Soldier Law. As an active duty military attorney resource, the firm is available when you need it, including outside normal business hours, because military legal issues rarely wait for a convenient time to arise.
