Era I
The Founders, 1987–1999
Five Chiefs built the desk, integrated the CW5 grade and carried the cohort into the digital era.
Meet the FoundersAn unofficial history of the JAG Corps Legal Administrator
This site preserves the history of the Army Legal Administrator (MOS 270A) and the thirteen senior warrant officers who have served as Chief Warrant Officer of the Corps since 1987. It is written for current and former Legal Administrators, paralegals considering a warrant officer path, and anyone interested in the heritage of the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps.
Current Chief Warrant Officer of the Corps
CW5 James A. Carroll
The current Chief of the Corps, focused on offline-capable legal systems for large-scale combat, senior-grade retention and the secure use of AI.
Read bioBridging the law and the mission
Judge advocates serve as counselors, litigators and military judges, and the enlisted paralegal corps provides frontline legal support. The Legal Administrator (MOS 270A) connects the practice of law to the work that sustains it: fiscal execution, force readiness, personnel and technology management.
Since 1987, the Chief Warrant Officer of the Corps (CWOC) has advised The Judge Advocate General directly on the long-term health, deployment readiness and technical modernization of the legal warrant officer cohort across the Active Component, Army Reserve and National Guard.
The Lineage of the Chief Warrant Officer of the Corps
Thirteen senior warrant officers have advised The Judge Advocate General on the health and readiness of the Legal Administrator cohort since 1987.
Era II
The Wartime Era, 1999–2015
Four Chiefs led through 9/11, two wars, the surge and the drawdown that followed.
Meet the Wartime ChiefsEra III
The Modern Era, 2015–Present
Four Chiefs are preparing the cohort for large-scale combat operations and new technology.
Meet the Modern Chiefs
In memoriam
CW5 Sharon T. Swartworth
CW5 Sharon T. Swartworth, the 6th CWOC, was killed in action near Tikrit, Iraq, on November 7, 2003, with Regimental Command Sergeant Major Cornell W. Gilmore, while inspecting the welfare of JAG personnel in theater. She rests in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery.
Read her story