Deadline approaching for JAG Corps’ FLEP/ELP law school programs

  • Published
  • By Submitted by 341st Missile Wing Staff Judge Advocate's Office
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. --  Applications for the Funded Legal Education Program and Excess Leave Program are being accepted from Jan. 1 to March 1, 2010.

Interested officers are encouraged to compete.

FLEP is a paid legal studies program for active-duty Air Force officers. Participants receive full pay, allowances, and tuition.

Applicants must have between two and six years total active-duty service, enlisted or commissioned, and must be an 0-3 or below the day they begin law school. FLEP is subject to tuition limitations, and positions may be limited due to overall funding availability. Tuition limits are subject to budgetary considerations, and the Academic Year 2010 is set at approximately $16,000 per year. This amount may change year to year.

ELP is an unpaid legal studies program for Air Force officers. ELP participants do not receive pay and allowances, but remain on active duty for retirement eligibility and benefits purposes. ELP applicants must have between two and 10 years active duty service and must be an O-3 or below as of the first day of law school.

"Our Air Force missions are constantly changing, and commanders deserve to have access to legal advisors with a broad background of military experiences," said Colonel Robin Moro, director of professional development directorate in the Office of The Judge Advocate General. "The FLEP and ELP will ensure that we can continue to maintain a Corps of officers whose military experience complements their legal training providing commanders with the highest caliber of legal support."

Colonel Moro said, Air Force JAGs do more than just provide legal assistance.

In addition to prosecuting and defending clients brought before courts-martial, JAG officers routinely participate in nearly every facet of the Air Force mission, including developing and acquiring weapons systems, ensuring availability of airspace and ranges where those systems are tested and operated, consulting with commanders about how those systems are employed in armed conflict, and assisting commanders in the day-to-day running of military installations around the world.

"Every facet of every Air Force mission is bound by elements of the law," Colonel Moro said.

Applications for fiscal year 2010 FLEP and ELP will be accepted from Jan.1 to March 1, 2010.

Selection for both programs is competitive. To be considered for FLEP or ELP, applicants must have completed all application forms, applied to at least one ABA accredited law school (multiple schools is recommended), received their Law School Admissions Test results, and completed a Staff Judge Advocate interview by March 1, 2010. Officers must also provide a letter of conditional release from their current career field. The application process is lengthy, and applicants are encouraged to begin the process by the fall of 2009. Upon law school graduation and admission to the bar, participants are eligible for designation as judge advocates.

Applications meet a selection board in early March. Selections are made based on a review of the application package using a "whole person" concept. AFI 51-101, Judge Advocate Accession Program, Chapters 2 and 3, discuss FLEP and ELP in greater detail.

For more information and application materials, visit www.airforce.com/jag, contact your base legal office, or contact Capt. Afsana Ahmed at afsana.ahmed@pentagon.af.mil or 1-800-JAG-USAF.