Appealing an Article 15: Grounds, Timelines, and Filing
Quick answer
In the Army, you appeal an Article 15 to the next superior authority through the commander who imposed it. Under AR 27-10, an appeal submitted more than five calendar days after punishment is imposed is presumed untimely unless good cause is shown, so request any extension in writing before the deadline. You get one appeal, so it should be focused and supported. Gonzalez & Waddington prepares Article 15 appeals for Soldiers and other service members.
Key takeaways
- One appeal, through the imposing commander, to the next superior authority — presumed untimely after five calendar days. AR 27-10, para. 3-29.
- The appellate authority should act within five days (three for summarized); if it takes longer and you ask, liberty-deprivation punishments pause until decision.
- Serious punishments — reduction from E-4 or above, or more than 7 days of forfeiture/arrest/custody or 14 days of extra duty or restriction — trigger a mandatory legal review by a judge advocate. Art. 15(e), UCMJ.
- The appellate authority can approve, suspend, mitigate, remit, or set aside — it cannot increase punishment.
- Losing the appeal is not the end: E-5s and above can petition the DASEB to transfer or remove a performance-filed Article 15, and set-aside remains available for clear injustice.
The right to appeal — once
Every Soldier punished at an Article 15 may appeal — but only once. AR 27-10, para. 3-29. The appeal travels through the imposing commander, who gets first crack at fixing the problem: if the imposing commander (or a successor) grants the relief requested, the appeal may never need to go further. Otherwise it rises to the next superior authority — typically the battalion commander for a company grade action, the brigade commander for a field grade action.
Two features make this appeal unusual and worth taking seriously. The punishment is already running, so speed matters. And the appellate authority’s powers run only in your favor: approve, suspend, mitigate, remit, or set aside — never increase. An appeal is, in that narrow sense, free. The only cost of a bad appeal is a wasted opportunity, which is why it should never be a handwritten note dashed off in anger.
The five-day rule and interrupted punishment
The regulation gives you a “reasonable time” to appeal — and then defines the presumption: after five calendar days, an appeal is presumed untimely and may be rejected. AR 27-10, para. 3-29. Treat five days as the deadline, and treat day one as the day punishment is imposed.
The clock runs the other way, too. The appellate authority should act within five calendar days (three for summarized proceedings). Punishment normally continues during the appeal — but if the decision takes longer than the allotted period and the Soldier requests it, punishments involving deprivation of liberty (extra duty, restriction) are interrupted until the appeal is decided. AR 27-10, para. 3-21b. Few Soldiers know to make that request; defense counsel always should.
Who decides — and the mandatory legal review
Before acting on an appeal from the more serious punishments, the appellate authority must refer the case to a judge advocate for legal review. Art. 15(e), UCMJ; AR 27-10, para. 3-34. The trigger list:
- reduction of one or more grades from E-4 or above;
- more than 7 days of arrest in quarters, correctional custody, or forfeiture of pay; or
- more than 14 days of extra duty, restriction, or detention of pay.
The reviewing judge advocate examines both the appropriateness of the punishment and whether the proceedings were conducted in accordance with law and regulation — and is not limited to the written record; the JA may make additional inquiries. That review is the defense’s real audience in a serious appeal: a legally literate reader who must put their name on the file. Appeals written only to the general’s sense of mercy waste that audience; appeals that identify a concrete legal defect give the JA a professional reason to recommend relief.
The appellate authority may consider the record, your submissions, the legal review, and other appropriate matters — and may act even if you never appeal at all. AR 27-10, paras. 3-33, 3-35.
Grounds that actually win
In our experience, five families of arguments do the heavy lifting:
- Insufficient evidence. The commander had to be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt (AR 27-10, para. 3-18l); an appeal that walks the appellate authority through what the evidence actually was — and was not — puts that standard to work.
- Procedural defects. Notice not given or defective, decision period denied or cut short, counsel consultation obstructed, witness requests ignored, the hearing held without the Soldier, the wrong form, the wrong commander. The mandatory legal review exists to catch exactly these.
- Unlawful punishment. Amounts above the imposing commander’s ceiling, illegal combinations (restriction plus extra duty beyond the extra-duty cap), reduction of a Soldier the commander lacked authority to reduce — see the punishment limits.
- Disproportionate punishment. Punishment lawful in amount but unjust in context: first offense, exceptional record, disparate treatment of others in the same incident. This is where character evidence, awards, and evaluations belong.
- An unfair forum. A commander who prejudged the case, was personally entangled in the underlying conflict, or announced punishment before hearing the Soldier — the Deskbook itself flags the commander-as-interested-party problem as a reason appeals succeed.
What this means if you were just punished
Start the appeal the same day. Ask defense counsel to review the DA Form 2627 for legal defects first — an unlawful combination or authority defect is stronger than any plea for leniency — then layer the equity case on top: your record, your awards, statements from your chain and peers, and everything the commander refused to consider. File within five calendar days, and if the decision drags past the deadline, request in writing that extra duty and restriction be interrupted.
Building the appeal packet
Additional matters are optional on appeal — but an appeal without them is just a request to re-read the same file. A persuasive packet typically contains: a tight memorandum framing the legal errors and the equity case; the evidence the hearing ignored or never saw; character statements aimed at the specific misconduct alleged; the Soldier’s ERB/ORB, evaluations, and awards; and a precise request for relief — set aside, or in the alternative mitigation to a stated punishment and transfer of the filing. Asking only to “set everything aside” forfeits the middle outcomes appellate authorities actually grant.
Beyond the appeal: DASEB, set-aside, and boards
Losing the appeal does not exhaust the remedies:
- DASEB transfer or removal. Sergeants and above may petition the Department of the Army Suitability Evaluation Board to move a performance-filed DA Form 2627 to the restricted folder — on evidence the punishment has served its purpose — or to remove it entirely. Petitions are normally ripe one year after punishment. AR 27-10, para. 3-43; AR 600-37.
- Set-aside. The imposing commander, a successor, or a superior can set aside punishment for “clear injustice” — generally within four months. New evidence discovered after the appeal fits here.
- Vacation actions are not appealable — if a suspended punishment is vacated, there is no appeal from the vacation (AR 27-10, para. 3-29b), which makes contesting the underlying vacation hearing the only line of defense.
- Downstream fights. If the Article 15 later fuels a separation board, a promotion non-select, or a court-martial sentencing exhibit, its defects live on: improperly completed or maintained records can be challenged when offered. United States v. Rimmer, 39 M.J. 1083 (A.C.M.R. 1994).
Practitioner’s note
The appeal memo we write is aimed at the judge advocate doing the Article 15(e) review, not just the commander signing the action. That reader checks two boxes — lawful proceedings, appropriate punishment — so our memos are organized to make one of those boxes impossible to check. And we always ask for the specific alternative: suspend the reduction, remit the remaining extra duty, restrict-file the form. Commanders who will not admit error will often still take the face-saving middle path — if the defense builds it for them.
Video transcript
Transcript of the video “How to Appeal an Article 15,” with Alexandra González-Waddington of Gonzalez & Waddington.
Read the full transcript of this video
How do you appeal an Article 15? You submit a written appeal to the next superior commander within 5 days of the punishment arguing that it was unjust or disproportionate and you can attach new evidence. I’m Alexandra González-Waddington, civilian military defense lawyer and co-founder of Gonzalez & Waddington. Most Article 15 appeals fail because they’re a paragraph of complaint written the night before the deadline.
Here’s how to write one that works. First, the rules. Under Article 15 e of the UCMJ, a service member who’s been punished under Article 15 may appeal to the next superior authority. In the Army, AR 27-10 gives you 5 calendar days from the imposition of punishment. In the Navy and Marine Corps, 5 days under the JAG manual. The Air Force and Coast Guard have similar windows. The appeal is decided by the commander above the one who punished you after a judge advocate reviews it if the punishment was serious.
The superior can leave the punishment alone, reduce it, suspend it, or set it aside entirely. They cannot increase it. Second, the two grounds. Under the Manual for Courts-Martial, an appeal argues that the punishment was unjust, meaning the evidence didn’t support the finding, or disproportionate, meaning the punishment was too severe for the offense and the person. You can argue both. Most appeals should. Here’s how to build it.
One, get the record. The Article 15 form, the evidence the commander considered, and anything you submitted. If you didn’t submit anything at the hearing, that’s a problem the appeal has to overcome. Two, the injustice argument. Point to specific evidence. The finding rests on Specialist Jones’s statement. Attached is Sergeant Smith’s statement placing me at the motor pool at that time. New evidence is allowed on appeal and it’s often what wins.
Statements you didn’t have at the hearing, records you couldn’t get in time, a witness who came forward. Three, the disproportion argument. Compare the punishment to the offense and to you. A field grade maximum for a first offense by a soldier with nine years and three deployments may be disproportionate compared with a third offense of a soldier with nine months of service. Attach evaluations, awards, and letters from leaders who know you.
Cite what similar cases in the unit received, if you know. Four, the filing. In the army, if the commander directed the Article 15 into your permanent performance file, the appeal can ask the superior to change the filing to restricted. For senior NCOs, that’s often the most important thing in the appeal. Five, the tone. Respectful, factual, specific. No attacks on the commander, no venting, no legalese you don’t understand.
The superior commander is deciding whether a subordinate commander got it wrong, and they’re more likely to say yes to a soldier who sounds reasonable. Six, the request. Ask for something specific. Set aside the finding, reduce the reduction, suspend the forfeiture, change the filing. Vague appeals get vague answers. And a practical point. You can ask the punishing commander for more time to file, and you can ask them to reconsider on their own before the appeal goes up.
Both are worth doing when there’s new evidence. What if the appeal fails? For serious Article 15s, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records can later remove or change an Article 15 that was unjust or erroneous. And the Department of the Army Suitability Evaluation Board can move a filing to restricted. Those are longer roads, but that exist. At Gonzalez & Waddington, we write Article 15 appeals for clients across every service, and the ones that win share one trait.
They show the superior commander something the first commander never saw. So, how do you appeal an Article 15? Five days, in writing, to the next superior on grounds of injustice or disproportion, with new evidence, a specific request, and a professional tone. I’m Alexandra González-Waddington with Gonzalez & Waddington. We defend service members worldwide. You can learn more at ucmjdefense.com or call 1-800-921-8607 for a free, confidential consultation.
Frequently asked questions
What is the deadline to appeal an Army Article 15?
Five calendar days after punishment is imposed, unless an extension is granted for good cause.
How many times can I appeal an Army Article 15?
Only once, so the appeal should be focused, supported by evidence and filed on time through the commander who imposed the punishment.
How long do I have to appeal an Article 15?
A reasonable time — with a hard presumption attached: an appeal submitted more than five calendar days after punishment is imposed is presumed untimely and may be rejected. File within five days, and start preparing the day punishment is imposed. AR 27-10, para. 3-29.
Who decides my Article 15 appeal?
The appeal goes through the imposing commander — who can grant relief and end the matter — to the next superior authority. For serious punishments, a judge advocate must first review the case for legal sufficiency and appropriateness of the punishment. Art. 15(e), UCMJ.
Can an Article 15 appeal increase my punishment?
No. The appellate authority may approve, suspend, mitigate, remit, or set aside the punishment, but cannot make it worse. In that sense, a well-founded appeal carries no punishment risk.
Does my punishment stop while the appeal is pending?
Generally no — punishment continues during the appeal. But if the appellate authority takes longer than five calendar days (three for summarized proceedings) and you request it, punishments involving deprivation of liberty are interrupted until the appeal is decided.
What if my appeal is denied — is the Article 15 permanent?
Not necessarily. Sergeants and above can petition the DASEB to transfer a performance-filed Article 15 to the restricted folder or remove it, normally after one year. A set-aside for clear injustice remains possible, and defects in the record can still be raised if the Article 15 is used against you later.
About the attorneys behind this guide
Michael Waddington, Civilian Military Defense Lawyer
Michael Waddington has spent more than 25 years finding the legal defect that unravels a disciplinary action — the unlawful punishment combination, the commander without authority, the hearing that never followed the regulation. A former Army prosecutor and defense counsel, he knows how the judge advocates who review Article 15 appeals read a file, because he wrote those reviews before he spent two decades beating them.
Alexandra González-Waddington, Founding Partner
Alexandra González-Waddington, founding partner of Gonzalez & Waddington and author of this guide, has drafted NJP appeals, DASEB petitions, and set-aside requests for service members across every branch for more than 20 years. Her appellate packets pair the legal defect with the equity case — and with the specific, face-saving alternative that gives a reviewing authority a reason to grant relief.
Talk to a civilian court-martial defense lawyer today
Gonzalez & Waddington defends Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Guardians, and Coast Guardsmen worldwide — in UCMJ investigations, courts-martial, Article 15/NJP actions, GOMOR rebuttals, administrative separation boards, and Boards of Inquiry. We defend the whole case: the investigation, the trial, the administrative fallout, and the long-term consequences to your rank, retirement, clearance, and discharge.
Sources for this guide include the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the Manual for Courts-Martial (2024 ed.), the Rules for Courts-Martial, the TJAGLCS Criminal Law Deskbook, and the cited decisions of the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces and the service Courts of Criminal Appeals. It is attorney advertising and general legal information — not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney–client relationship. Every case turns on its own facts. Service procedures vary; Army references (AR 27-10) are noted where used.