CAP Talk

How long does it take to go through the process to become a Legal Officer?

I attended two meetings before getting the application.  During the two meetings, I asked to speak to a Legal Officer to inquire into the position, and to this day I still have not heard from one.  I completed the application and submitted it to National and the Senior Member rank was on May 8th.  I completed all of the required initial on-line coursework and then I was asked for a Certificate of Good Standing and law school transcripts.  I provided them at the following meeting. 

Is this normal?  I am licensed in Missouri and I am living in California (taking the CA bar this July).

You can only be appointed as a Legal Officer at the wing level or higher, and only if they
are interested in your services.

The unit cannot appoint you as a Legal Officer at that level.

You need to contact the Wing JA and discuss if they need additional help.

Thanks for the reply.

The regulation changed last year. Legal officers can serve at the Squadron or Group level, but must be appointed by Wing.

It appears that you need to be licensed in the state where you are a member, unless I read it wrong.

I don't beleive you have to be licensed in the state you are in CAP in.

I think we have 7 legal officers in our state, so they are few adn far between.  Your delay is probably that no one knows what to do with you.  See if you can contact the Wing or Region legal office for your area.  That is your chain of command as a legal officer.

Quote from: EMT-83 on June 21, 2014, 08:56:21 PM
The regulation changed last year. Legal officers can serve at the Squadron or Group level, but must be appointed by Wing.

It appears that you need to be licensed in the state where you are a member, unless I read it wrong.

It only says "a" state, with no comment about which state, though how much use someone can be
in one state, when they aren't licensed there, would be a matter of opinion.  If appointed at a Region or National
level I would imagine it becomes less relevent.

CAPR 111-1 is your guide: http://www.capmembers.com/media/cms/R111_001_98AEF8F3D4447.pdf (http://www.capmembers.com/media/cms/R111_001_98AEF8F3D4447.pdf)

"a. Must be currently authorized and licensed to practice law before the highest court of a
state, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or the District of Columbia. Qualification as a legal
officer is not an authorization to practice law. Such authority is controlled by local law. For
purposes of compliance with state rules governing the practice of law, legal officers are not
considered to be "in-house counsel" to CAP."

The reg goes on to further indicate that appointments made by a wing CC must be reviewed by the region JA,
so even at best this isn't going to be a quick process, and that again assumes the wing is interested in more
legal officers.

Though the reg still maintains the titles of Unit and Group JAs, there's nothing they can really do in that
capacity at those levels for those CCs.  All matters of contract and law have to go through wing, at a minimum,
including IG and Safety investigations, so there's really no point.  I wouldn't be inclined to make the appointment
at those levels (full disclosure, prior to the change in appointment rules, I had a JA as a Group CC, mostly because
the person was in place when I assumed command - he did ultimately help me obtain rights for a song for an
encampment video, however technically that was a wing function since encampments are executed at that level.
Once the rules changed about appointments, the wing was not interested in reappointing him as such, despite the
fact that he had attended the NLC and consulted on a number of Region and National issues.)

You need to contact the Wing JA, and make sure to /cc your unit Commander on all correspondence.