Hey Florence! 👋🏽 Sure, I can do that. I’ll probably have to break into into topics and cover each topic separately because it can be a lot of info for one go. But I’ll work on it.
How often do Jags typically deploy? I know your family is able to go with you and live on base, but how often do you end up leaving them for different periods of time?
Your family is able to come with you when you permanently change duty stations (to the vast majority of locations), but they’re not able to deploy with you. With JAGs, it depends on your branch of service and your level of interest. I’ve deployed twice in the past 3 years, for instance, but I enjoy doing so. There are others who’ve been in as long as I have and have never deployed, and don’t particularly desire to do so. It really just depends on what’s going on in the world and whether you have an interest in going.
We get paid the same as any other officer, based on rank and time in service. I broke down the military pay system here: Military Pay 2022 | How Much Do You Get Paid by Rank? ua-cam.com/video/ioa-nyfzWDA/v-deo.html Hope this helps!
Is there a set list of base legal offices offered for first assignments or does that encompass every single Air Force base? Or are there certain locations that first assignment JAGs tend to get?
Probably the main reason I made this video was to help people interested in joining to set proper expectations, primarily because my expectations coming in weren't really in line with reality. The key thing is that you're going to be a generalist and you're most likely going to be working in a base legal office for your first 2-3 assignments (5-6 years). If you think you'd be just as content working as an attorney in a general practice law firm, then the JAG Corps is a great option to consider, and it's hard to beat the military's perks. But, if you're joining with the expectation that you'll be able to specialize in any particular field (i.e. contracts, space law, international law, etc) or be out there in the war zone advising on strike authorizations, war crimes, etc - realize that you likely won't get those types of opportunities until you're at least 6+ years in. So I think that your level of job satisfaction will correlate directly with whether or not you had a proper expectation of what you'll be doing and when (meaning, at what point in your career) when you first joined. At least, that's been my experience.
@@ashleynoelle can a member of us military sue his commander in civil court for giving him unlawful deployment orders aka sent to fight a undeclared war ? How can we legally stop our government from fighting illegal wars what happen to checks and balances
@@asdfghjkl3003 Pay is based on RANK, it's nothing like civilian. In Civilian sector you'll make 100k-200k entry level, and the old saying is if you can sell $50,000 in real-estate a year you can sell $500,000 worth of law practice per year. You can make crazy money in the civilian sector. The military sector isn't going to be for the money, but for the experience. It's for someone who wants to serve their country, but also gain law experience in a generalist broad spectrum. You'll come out, if you don't retire doing it as someone with experience in multiple areas, and then you can hone down on your skills in the civilian market, some firms might not like that you haven't specialized and it can actually hurt you. With the military you'll start out at 40k per year "yes literally." Then, if you're married, they'll give you a basic housing allowance for rent which depending on area will be $1,500-$2,500 per month. Most people add that to their pay package, don't. If they put you somewhere like JBLM your rent for a 3bd house is going to be $3,000-$4,000 per month, and BAH is covering $2,500. You have to come up with the rest out of pocket. The Insurance is good, but think of it like every states low income insurance. Those will be your benefits and you can only go to doctors in network, and anything out of network will come out of pocket 100%. I know military vets, and the insurance is not the best. The military will also pay $65,000 towards your student loans, so if you didn't get a scholarship it can help, but don't think that it'll be a free ride. Some people come out with 150k in debt, and the 65k only helps a little. You don't choose the military route for the money, if you want a big house, and to practice in any state which your original bar exam affiliates reciprocity go CIVILIAN. The military looks good on police applications, but law firms and boutiques really don't care about it, and it will not give you an edge. Where you go to law school will give you the most edge when it comes to getting a job at big law or corporate law. If you want a $500,000 house in Houston, TX or even a $1M home. Forget about the military tract. If your significant other is a medical doctor or an RN, it'll be reckless to have them changing jobs constantly when it's time to relocate every 3-4 years. Forget about that too. Only do the military route if you are young, and really just want to serve and experience it. There's an honor to it, and nobody does it for money. Greed can make you miss out on a lot of great opportunities, but not being realistic can also set you up for failure for your own goals. You wont be driving a range rover, Porsche or anything like that while doing JAG. You very well can in Civilian, but you wont have the marketing on branding of "military." behind you. I my self think it's a brainwash for the weak. I don't respect anyone more if they do military, we all can do military.
@@asdfghjkl3003 I'll also add. Go to law school. You don't even have to practice law, once they re-organize your mind you can go on to teach, write books and anything else you desire. It's very worth it. Everyone will see you as a force to be reckoned with.
Wait do you need to go to lawschool first and pass the bar test. I’m a dropout college student who’s going the marines this year to get funding for education… will If I choose law will they send me to a law school?
I’m not sure how it works for the Marines, but for Air Force at least, you’ll need to have graduated from law school and be licensed to practice (passed the bar exam and sworn in as an attorney) in a state/territory before you can commission as a JAG.
No, JAGs are able to help you with the military-side of those issues - like if your command wants to discipline you for trouble you got in off base - but you’ll need a civilian attorney to represent you in civilian court.
My son is a rising junior at Virginia Tech in their corps of cadets/Army ROTC program. If he goes JAG, can he eventually transition into civilian law, and if so, how long would his commitment to the Army/military be? My thought was he would get great experience under his belt as a JAG, making him a desirable candite to join a private firm? Am I simplifying this too much?
Every military contract is 8 years wither that’s 4 or 6 years active duty the remaining time would be inactive but still be able call back to duty if needed very unlikely but still an option.
The minimum he’d have to commit to is 4 years active duty, then 4 years inactive reserve. Like Tristan mentioned above, that inactive reserve portion means there’s a possibility he could be recalled to duty, but it’s very rare (this isn’t the same as if he’d join the Reserves straight out). You’re not oversimplifying it. A lot of JAGs do that.
I attend a smaller law school (Florida A&M College of Law). Will it be harder to earn a JAG commission from a smaller, lower-ranked school as opposed to a higher-ranked one like Duke or the University of Michigan? Is law review or moot court necessary to be a competitive applicant? Certain class ranking?
There are plenty of folks in the JAG Corps of every branch who graduated from smaller law schools, so that shouldn’t be a barrier for you. And no, law review and moot court aren’t necessary, though they may be helpful. They look at applicants using “the whole person concept.” So sure, your grades and extra curriculars matter, but if those are lacking, maybe try to boost your competitiveness with good internships/work experience and get strong recommendations from your supervisors. Or try doing some relevant volunteer work and get strong recommendations from your volunteer coordinators. Basically, just as you would do with any job application where your grades may not be the selling point, try to make up for that in other areas to show your leadership ability and that you’re a hard worker.
So basically, if you’re enlisted in the Army, can you become an officer and then retrain into the Army JAG Corps? Yes, through the Army’s Funded Legal Education Program (FLEP). I don’t know much about Army’s FLEP, but I imagine it’s like the Air Force’s in that you’ll end up incurring an additional service commitment on top of the one you currently have. You can see more about their program on their recruitment page here: www.goarmy.com/careers-and-jobs/specialty-careers/law.html. Scroll down to the part that talks about FLEP.
To be accepted, you need to be a U.S. citizen, and also you need to have graduated from a U.S.-accredited law school and be a member of the bar (of any state or territory). So those may be your initial challenges.
Not at all. Simply because of how long it takes for us to finish school and pass the bar, it’s common for JAGs to join when they’re around 30 or a bit older. If you have any sort of post-law school work experience, that’s probably to be expected.
This is such a great video! I recently graduated law school in May and considering joining JAG. I would love to connect and ask more questions if possible. Do you have social media or LinkedIn?
Awesome video. Thank you. It would be great if you could make a video comparing life as an active JAG vs one in the reserves or guard.
Please make this video. I'm contemplating JAG reserve.
This is the information I have been looking for .I was not sure if I wanted to become a military lawyer and I'm glad I come across this video.
I can’t wait to be a JAG in the NAVY.❤
Hi! Nice video, I am a lawyer as well, yet in another NATO country, so it is interesting to me twice as much.
Wonderful video. Informative and well thought out.
Thank you!
You're welcome! 🙂
Great video! Can you expound upon this topic and provide salary and benefits (401k, etc) information?
Hey Florence! 👋🏽 Sure, I can do that. I’ll probably have to break into into topics and cover each topic separately because it can be a lot of info for one go. But I’ll work on it.
Thank you
Sure thing!
How often do Jags typically deploy? I know your family is able to go with you and live on base, but how often do you end up leaving them for different periods of time?
Your family is able to come with you when you permanently change duty stations (to the vast majority of locations), but they’re not able to deploy with you. With JAGs, it depends on your branch of service and your level of interest. I’ve deployed twice in the past 3 years, for instance, but I enjoy doing so. There are others who’ve been in as long as I have and have never deployed, and don’t particularly desire to do so. It really just depends on what’s going on in the world and whether you have an interest in going.
Can you expand more about the compensation as a military lawyer?
We get paid the same as any other officer, based on rank and time in service. I broke down the military pay system here: Military Pay 2022 | How Much Do You Get Paid by Rank?
ua-cam.com/video/ioa-nyfzWDA/v-deo.html Hope this helps!
This was an amazingly well done. Thank you for providing this information.
Is there a set list of base legal offices offered for first assignments or does that encompass every single Air Force base? Or are there certain locations that first assignment JAGs tend to get?
I’m interested in Law and being a JAG in the Army but I don’t have a law degree or any education in it. Is it possible?
Im an ROTC cadet thinking about going JAG. Have you enjoyed your time as a JAG?
Probably the main reason I made this video was to help people interested in joining to set proper expectations, primarily because my expectations coming in weren't really in line with reality. The key thing is that you're going to be a generalist and you're most likely going to be working in a base legal office for your first 2-3 assignments (5-6 years). If you think you'd be just as content working as an attorney in a general practice law firm, then the JAG Corps is a great option to consider, and it's hard to beat the military's perks. But, if you're joining with the expectation that you'll be able to specialize in any particular field (i.e. contracts, space law, international law, etc) or be out there in the war zone advising on strike authorizations, war crimes, etc - realize that you likely won't get those types of opportunities until you're at least 6+ years in. So I think that your level of job satisfaction will correlate directly with whether or not you had a proper expectation of what you'll be doing and when (meaning, at what point in your career) when you first joined. At least, that's been my experience.
@@ashleynoelle can a member of us military sue his commander in civil court for giving him unlawful deployment orders aka sent to fight a undeclared war ? How can we legally stop our government from fighting illegal wars what happen to checks and balances
@@ashleynoelle Is the pay reasonable and was it hard to get the job?
@@asdfghjkl3003 Pay is based on RANK, it's nothing like civilian. In Civilian sector you'll make 100k-200k entry level, and the old saying is if you can sell $50,000 in real-estate a year you can sell $500,000 worth of law practice per year. You can make crazy money in the civilian sector.
The military sector isn't going to be for the money, but for the experience.
It's for someone who wants to serve their country, but also gain law experience in a generalist broad spectrum.
You'll come out, if you don't retire doing it as someone with experience in multiple areas, and then you can hone down on your skills in the civilian market, some firms might not like that you haven't specialized and it can actually hurt you.
With the military you'll start out at 40k per year "yes literally." Then, if you're married,
they'll give you a basic housing allowance for rent which depending on area will be $1,500-$2,500 per month. Most people add that to their pay package, don't.
If they put you somewhere like JBLM your rent for a 3bd house is going to be $3,000-$4,000 per month, and BAH is covering $2,500. You have to come up with the rest out of pocket. The Insurance is good, but think of it like every states low income insurance. Those will be your benefits and you can only go to doctors in network, and anything out of network will come out of pocket 100%. I know military vets, and the insurance is not the best. The military will also pay $65,000 towards your student loans, so if you didn't get a scholarship it can help, but don't think that it'll be a free ride. Some people come out with 150k in debt, and the 65k only helps a little. You don't choose the military route for the money, if you want a big house, and to practice in any state which your original bar exam affiliates reciprocity go CIVILIAN. The military looks good on police applications, but law firms and boutiques really don't care about it, and it will not give you an edge. Where you go to law school will give you the most edge when it comes to getting a job at big law or corporate law. If you want a $500,000 house in Houston, TX or even a $1M home. Forget about the military tract. If your significant other is a medical doctor or an RN, it'll be reckless to have them changing jobs constantly when it's time to relocate every 3-4 years. Forget about that too. Only do the military route if you are young, and really just want to serve and experience it. There's an honor to it, and nobody does it for money. Greed can make you miss out on a lot of great opportunities, but not being realistic can also set you up for failure for your own goals. You wont be driving a range rover, Porsche or anything like that while doing JAG. You very well can in Civilian, but you wont have the marketing on branding of "military." behind you. I my self think it's a brainwash for the weak. I don't respect anyone more if they do military, we all can do military.
@@asdfghjkl3003 I'll also add. Go to law school. You don't even have to practice law, once they re-organize your mind you can go on to teach, write books and anything else you desire. It's very worth it. Everyone will see you as a force to be reckoned with.
I’m a high schooler rn hoping to go to West Point become a officer and do law school after that and become a JAG is this a good plan?
Wait do you need to go to lawschool first and pass the bar test. I’m a dropout college student who’s going the marines this year to get funding for education… will If I choose law will they send me to a law school?
I’m not sure how it works for the Marines, but for Air Force at least, you’ll need to have graduated from law school and be licensed to practice (passed the bar exam and sworn in as an attorney) in a state/territory before you can commission as a JAG.
Can a JAG help you defend civil matters? Like wreckless driving?
No, JAGs are able to help you with the military-side of those issues - like if your command wants to discipline you for trouble you got in off base - but you’ll need a civilian attorney to represent you in civilian court.
My son is a rising junior at Virginia Tech in their corps of cadets/Army ROTC program. If he goes JAG, can he eventually transition into civilian law, and if so, how long would his commitment to the Army/military be? My thought was he would get great experience under his belt as a JAG, making him a desirable candite to join a private firm? Am I simplifying this too much?
Every military contract is 8 years wither that’s 4 or 6 years active duty the remaining time would be inactive but still be able call back to duty if needed very unlikely but still an option.
The minimum he’d have to commit to is 4 years active duty, then 4 years inactive reserve. Like Tristan mentioned above, that inactive reserve portion means there’s a possibility he could be recalled to duty, but it’s very rare (this isn’t the same as if he’d join the Reserves straight out). You’re not oversimplifying it. A lot of JAGs do that.
I attend a smaller law school (Florida A&M College of Law). Will it be harder to earn a JAG commission from a smaller, lower-ranked school as opposed to a higher-ranked one like Duke or the University of Michigan? Is law review or moot court necessary to be a competitive applicant? Certain class ranking?
There are plenty of folks in the JAG Corps of every branch who graduated from smaller law schools, so that shouldn’t be a barrier for you. And no, law review and moot court aren’t necessary, though they may be helpful. They look at applicants using “the whole person concept.” So sure, your grades and extra curriculars matter, but if those are lacking, maybe try to boost your competitiveness with good internships/work experience and get strong recommendations from your supervisors. Or try doing some relevant volunteer work and get strong recommendations from your volunteer coordinators. Basically, just as you would do with any job application where your grades may not be the selling point, try to make up for that in other areas to show your leadership ability and that you’re a hard worker.
Many books 📚 online and in my case
If you’re a person that is currently enlisted active duty, can you go to ocs and then become a jag before your contract is up?
So basically, if you’re enlisted in the Army, can you become an officer and then retrain into the Army JAG Corps? Yes, through the Army’s Funded Legal Education Program (FLEP). I don’t know much about Army’s FLEP, but I imagine it’s like the Air Force’s in that you’ll end up incurring an additional service commitment on top of the one you currently have. You can see more about their program on their recruitment page here: www.goarmy.com/careers-and-jobs/specialty-careers/law.html. Scroll down to the part that talks about FLEP.
Nice video!
What's the possibility of an African becoming a JAG in the US?
To be accepted, you need to be a U.S. citizen, and also you need to have graduated from a U.S.-accredited law school and be a member of the bar (of any state or territory). So those may be your initial challenges.
@@ashleynoelleyou don’t need to become a citizen anymore.
I plan on joining at 30, is that too old for JAG?
Not at all. Simply because of how long it takes for us to finish school and pass the bar, it’s common for JAGs to join when they’re around 30 or a bit older. If you have any sort of post-law school work experience, that’s probably to be expected.
If you want JAG join the Air Force
I pay a law school books on my phone
J.V.Darnell
Marry me ❤❤
I think there’s just no good reason to be a JAG. You have no control over your own life. Just my opinion.
You can do it in the reserves too
So? You’re still making a great salary w/ amazing benefits. Better than doing doc review for peanuts after graduation.
This is such a great video! I recently graduated law school in May and considering joining JAG. I would love to connect and ask more questions if possible. Do you have social media or LinkedIn?
Sure! You can message me at contactashleynoelle@gmail.com