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Judges
The judges of the Court sit as a single panel on all cases. Typically, all five judges participate in each case, but the Court’s rules provide that a quorum is established by participation of a majority of the active judges. The Chief Judge also has discretion to call upon a former judge of the Court who is in senior judge status to sit as a senior judge if an active judge is unable to participate. If a senior judge is not available, the Chief Judge may request that the Chief Justice of the United States designate a judge of a United States Court of Appeals or United States District Court to serve with the Court.

Article 142 of the UCMJ provides that each judge “shall be appointed from civilian life.” To underscore the civilian nature of the Court, the statute provides that a person may not be appointed as a judge of the Court within seven years after retirement from active duty as a commissioned officer of a regular component of an armed force.

The judges are linked to the judges of the Article III courts of appeals for purposes of compensation.

The position of Chief Judge is rotated among the judges to the most senior judge who has not previously served as Chief Judge. The Chief Judge serves in that position for five years unless his or her term as a judge expires sooner. Prior to 1992, the Chief Judge was designated by the President from among the sitting judges.

Current Judges	Judicial Oath Taken	Expiration of Term
Kevin A. Ohlson (Chief Judge)	Nov. 1, 2013	July 31, 2028
John E. Sparks	Apr. 19, 2016	July 31, 2031
Gregory E. Maggs	Feb. 2, 2018	July 31, 2033
Liam P. Hardy	Dec. 8, 2020	July 31, 2035
M. Tia Johnson	Jan. 3, 2023	July 31, 2037

Prior Judges	Active Service
Robert E. Quinn	June 20, 1951 - April 25, 1975
George W. Latimer	June 20, 1951 - May 1, 1961
Paul W. Brosman	June 20, 1951 - Dec. 21, 1955
Homer Ferguson	April 9, 1956 - May 21, 1976
Paul J. Kilday	Sept. 25, 1961 - Oct. 12, 1968
William H. Darden	Nov. 13, 1968 - Dec. 29, 1973
Robert M. Duncan	Nov. 29, 1971 - July 11, 1974
William H. Cook	Aug. 21, 1974 - June 30, 1984
Albert B. Fletcher, Jr.	April 30, 1975 - Sept. 11, 1985
Matthew J. Perry	Feb. 18, 1976 - Sept. 22, 1979
Robinson O. Everett	April 16, 1980 - Jan. 1, 1992
Walter T. Cox III	Sept. 6, 1984 - Sept. 18, 2000
Eugene R. Sullivan	May 27, 1986 - Sept. 30, 2002
Susan J. Crawford	Nov. 19, 1991 - Sept. 30, 2006
H.F. “Sparky” Gierke	Nov. 20, 1991 - Sept. 30, 2006
Robert E. Wiss	Jan. 2, 1992 - Oct. 23, 1995
Andrew S. Effron	Aug. 1, 1996 - Sept. 30, 2011
James E. Baker	Sept. 19, 2000 - July 31, 2015
Charles E. “Chip” Erdmann	Oct. 15, 2002 - July 31, 2017
Margaret A. Ryan	Dec. 20, 2006 - July 31, 2020
Scott W. Stucky	Dec. 20, 2006 - July 31, 2021

Chief Judges	Active Service
Robert E. Quinn	1951-1971
William H. Darden	1971-1973
Robert M. Duncan	1973-1974
Albert B. Fletcher, Jr.	1975-1980
Robinson O. Everett	1980-1990
Eugene R. Sullivan	1990-1995
Walter T. Cox III	1995-1999
Susan J. Crawford	1999-2004
H.F. "Sparky" Gierke	2004-2006
Andrew S. Effron	2006-2011
James E. Baker	2011-2015
Charles E. “Chip” Erdmann	2015-2017
Scott W. Stucky	2017-2021
Kevin A. Ohlson	2021-present

Current Senior Judges See Article 142(e), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 942(e)

Walter T. Cox III

Eugene R. Sullivan

Susan J. Crawford

Andrew S. Effron

James E. Baker

Charles E. “Chip” Erdmann

Margaret A. Ryan

Scott W. Stucky

(Page Updated January 12, 2023)