NAVAL RESERVE FLAGpGRAM 05-01
From: Rear Admiral Steven B. Kantrowitz, JAGC, USNR
To: All Naval Reserve Judge Advocates and Legalmen
Subj: FlagpE-Gram 05-01
Date: 24 October 2004
As in the past, this Flag E-Gram will inform you of issues important to our Reserve JAG Corps community.
Change of Office: The Change of Office is scheduled for 1000 on Friday, 3 December 2004 at Admiral Leutze Park, Washington Navy Yard. Inclement weather site: Building 70, Washington Navy Yard. The uniform for guests is Service Dress Blue or business attire. The night before the ceremony, Thursday evening, there will be a retirement dinner. More details will be forthcoming. There is a fair amount of work to be done and, therefore, we would welcome volunteers. If you are interested in helping with any of the events, please contact one of the following people:
Retirement Dinner/Promotion Ceremony – Captain Ginny Grebasch – 202-501-1932
Ceremony – CDR Ingrid Turner – 202-685-5216
Reception – Captain Steve Cohn – 202-565-4052
Special Projects – CDR Michael Pinette – 202- 685-8371
I extend my thanks to all those who have or will volunteer. As these events unfold, look for more details to appear on our webpage: www.nrjag.org.
Leadership Conference: RMDL (Select) Joerg is looking forward to the Leadership Conference where he will have his first opportunity to discuss his plans, policies and goals with the senior leadership. As in the past, the leadership will be trained and chart the course for our community, but now in a time of dramatic change. This is both an exciting and important time for the Navy legal community, as we continue a major transformational change to continue to improve the legal services we provide to the fleet. At the conference, leaders will also have an opportunity to raise issues of importance and discuss solutions as they begin to chart our future course. The SJA/CO conference is scheduled for 3-5 December 2004 in the Washington DC area. The conference will convene at 1330 immediately following the Change of Office. Look for more details soon on our webpage: www.nrjag.org.
Commanding Officer, Reserve Trial Judiciary Activity: I want to publicly thank Captain Glenn Cook for his outstanding service as the Commanding Officer for the Reserve Trial Judiciary Activity. Under his leadership, this critically important unit provided outstanding service to the Navy and Marine Corps throughout the world. Congratulations to Captain Michael Catanese on his selection as the next Commanding Officer for the Reserve Trial Judiciary Activity. Captain Catanese is a 1979 graduate of Villanova University and a 1983 graduate from Loyola University School of Law. He was commissioned in 1982 through the JAGC Student Program. His reserve units include, VTU LAW 0413, PERSMOBTEAM 504, CIVLAWSUPACT 206, LSO 104, VTU LAW 0413 (served as XO and then CO), and NR TRIJUDACT. Captain Catanese works as an Assistant Deputy Public Defender in Cape May County, NJ.
For those of you that did not see the prior JAG Update, I have included a copy of the following information again:
Realigning the Navy JAG Corps. The CNO has directed a realignment of JAG Corps personnel that will place all SJA billets (JAG, LN, LDO) under the supervision of the JAG and a single resource sponsor. This is a major change from current practice. Currently, JAG billets are widely distributed among 20 major claimants and over a dozen resource sponsors, who individually determine JAG Corps requirements. This realignment will allow the JAG corps to find efficiencies and streamline the worldwide practice of military law consistent with the principles of Sea Enterprise, a component of Sea Power 21. We will not modify command and operational control over SJA mission activities. Commands with SJAs will continue to control SJA mission activities and evaluate individual performance, just as before (except for the CNI-TSO pilot projects discussed below). Instead, the JAG will be responsible for building a robust community by determining the proper personnel mix, distributing assets based on requirements, and finding efficiencies and standardizing practice when consistent with best business practices. You can expect to see a message from the CNO shortly, which will announce this significant change to the fleet.
Legalman Transformation. Our Legalmen continue to forge ahead and lead the Navy in many areas associated with Task Force Excel. The Legalman home page on NKO has been hailed as an example for other Navy ratings to emulate. The Naval Manpower and Analysis Center was so impressed with the professional and successful manner in which the Legalman community was prepared for their 5VM, they now use the Legalman rate as the example for the entire fleet. On the transformation front, we are attempting to increase our numbers of Legalman at-sea billets in an effort to transform our predominately shore based rate. We are proposing adding 10-15 Legalmen within LANT/PAC Fleets to serve on ships such as LPDs, LSDs, DDs, and DDGs. We are also working to establish the Legalman rate as the military equivalent of a civilian paralegal--with parallel education and certification programs--the ultimate goal being a stronger, more unified professional organization and rating. The first step is formation of a professional association for Legalmen to focus on community issues, education and training. The plan is that this organization would affiliate with the National Federation of Paralegals Association. This program will eventually become part of Task Force Excel and the Legalman 5VM.
Reserve Transformation. The Naval Reserve Force is also undergoing major transformation, a key component of which is improving Reserve Component (RC) alignment with the Active Component (AC). Our supporting Reserve judge advocates and legalmen will – as they do now – focus on directly supporting the AC through every available means, not just training for mobilization under the old Cold War model for the RC. The key concepts of reserve transformation include "surge" and operational support -- staffing needs with RC assets as they emerge and persist under conditions of challenging optempo or resource shortfalls in every part of our organization. This support will come in many forms such as inactive duty (drills) or active duty service through annual training (AT), active duty training (ADT), recalls and mobilizations. The RC Law Program is already integrated with and focused on supporting the AC, and will continue to:
Leverage the authority to "flex drill" during the normal work week enabling them to work directly alongside their AC counterparts.
Provide substantial support for longer periods of active duty to meet critical, emergent needs at the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals, OJAG Codes 13, 14, 15, 40, 45, 46, and at other Navy commands.
Answer the call to meet requests for JAG support from the Office of Military Commissions, the Criminal Investigative Task Force, the Combatant Status Review Tribunals, the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, NORTHCOM, CENTCOM and elsewhere.
Key challenges still remain in the RC. Both the AC and RC must strive to: (1) design proper metrics for the full and varied range of RC support; (2) use these metrics to establish an accurate data baseline; (3) maintain accurate and updated information in every practice area; and (4) use this data to effect proper alignment of the team, a process of continuous adjustment and improvement. We will have to work together as the superb team we are in this endeavor to ensure the most effective and efficient use of the available RC resource.
Pass this information along: I request that you forward this Flag E-Gram to those under your cognizance promptly.
God Bless America.
Warm regards,
STEVEN B. KANTROWITZ
Rear Admiral, JAGC, USNR
Assistant Deputy Judge Advocate General