https://crsreports.congress.gov
December 22, 2022
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces: A Brief
Introduction
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF)
provides the exclusive forum for those convicted at courts-
martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ)
to appeal the decisions of the Army, Navy-Marine Corps,
Air Force, and Coast Guard Courts of Criminal Appeals
(CCAs), the military service branches’ appellate courts.
This In Focus describes the CAAF’s creation, jurisdiction,
authority, and procedures before identifying issues that may
interest the 118th Congress.
Creation
Using its authority under Article I of the U.S. Constitution,
Congress established the CAAF (then called the Court of
Military Appeals) on May 5, 1950 (Pub. L. No. 81-506).
(For more information on Article I courts, see CRS Report
R43746, Congressional Power to Create Federal Courts: A
Legal Overview.) The National Defense Authorization Act
for FY1995 (P.L. 103-337) gave the CAAF its current
name. For administrative purposes only, the CAAF is part
of the Department of Defense. The statutes governing the
CAAF are located in chapter 47, subchapters IX and XII of
title 10 of the U.S. Code.
Jurisdiction and Authority
The CAAF has exclusive jurisdiction over appeals of
decisions of the CCAs, which, for their part, have exclusive
jurisdiction over appeals of court-martial determinations.
Decisions and determinations made within the military
legal system concern alleged infractions of the UCMJ, the
governing criminal code for the U.S. Armed Forces. The
UCMJ applies to active-duty servicemembers; military
retirees receiving pay; reserve component and National
Guard members under particular conditions; and other
individuals delineated in 10 U.S.C. § 802. (For additional
information on the military legal system, see CRS Report
R46503, Military Courts-Martial Under the Military
Justice Act of 2016.)
As a general matter, the CAAF reviews legal issues without
deference to the determinations of lower courts. In these
proceedings, the CAAF is to defer to lower courts’ factual
findings and only overturn such findings if clearly
erroneous.
The CAAF also has the authority under the All Writs Act,
28 U.S.C. § 1651, to issue writs—special types of court
orders—to aid its jurisdiction. For example, the CAAF has
issued writs of mandamus to compel officials to carry out
certain legally required functions and writs of prohibition
ordering lower courts to cease activities barred by law.
Judges
The CAAF consists of five judges, including a chief judge;
the most senior judge serves as chief judge. Judges are
nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate for
a fixed term of 15 years. (There is no statutory bar on
reappointing judges.) Nominations and hearings for
prospective CAAF judges proceed through the Senate
Committee on Armed Services. Before the expiration of her
term, a judge can be removed by the President only for
neglect of duty, misconduct, or mental or physical
disability. There are currently five active judges on the
CAAF.
Judges must be civilians and cannot be appointed to the
CAAF within seven years of being a commissioned officer
in a regular component of the Armed Forces. Four of the
five current judges previously served in the military.
In addition to active judges, the CAAF uses senior judges,
who are former CAAF judges that are receiving retirement
pay or an annuity for their service. The chief judge may call
upon senior judges, with their consent, to perform judicial
duties during periods when an active judge is unable to
perform her duties due to illness or disability; there is a
vacancy on the court; or a judge recuses from a case. There
are currently eight senior judges.
The chief judge may request that the Chief Justice of the
United States designate an Article III judge of a U.S. court
of appeals or district court to perform the duties of a CAAF
judge. The chief judge may do this in the same situations in
which a senior judge may be called upon to perform the
duties of a judge, provided that the chief judge determines
that no senior judge is available. The Article III judge and
the chief judge of the relevant U.S. court of appeals or
district court must consent to such a designation.
Court Proceedings
Proceedings before the CAAF are adversarial. Government
attorneys are appointed to represent individuals by their
respective military service; individuals may also retain
private counsel. The government is represented by attorneys
from the case’s originating military service branch. Only
attorneys who meet certain requirements may be admitted
to practice before the CAAF.
The CAAF generally sits in Washington, DC, but has the
authority to sit anywhere in the United States. Several times
per year, the CAAF holds oral arguments at law schools
and military installations.
