While I still need to review my notes from BG McMaster's discussion with us (a few weeks ago), I thought I'd jump right on some thoughts from a senior Marine Corps officer who spoke with us today.  (Remember, The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center & School enforces a non-attribution policy - an important feature that fosters open conversation - so no names.)  Suffice it to say, this was an officer who's been around and offered some thoughts on legal service that are definitely applicable in the Army (and just about anywhere else).

First, it's important to identify your client's priority and work toward it.  Those goals may not reflect your personal goals, but it is absolutely necessary to recognize that your client - whether it is a Soldier (as a defense counsel or legal assistance attorney) or the Army (as a prosecutor, staff judge advocate, or administrative law attorney) - defines the ends you work toward.  Understanding those priorities will allow you to give the most useful advice.

As a corollary to that point, remember that it is "easy to give advice, but it is hard to make decisions."  As judge advocates, we give advice.  Commanders (and clients) make decisions and ultimately they are the ones who must live with those decisions.  Keeping this in mind will help you emphasize the facts, arguments, and considerations most useful to making a decision.  Most of us could talk for hours about a given subject or advocating for a given course of action.  Make sure the decision-maker doesn't miss the most important points in a sea of minor matters.

Determine what the future challenges will be for your organization and prepare for them.  The Marine Corps, like the Army, has a traditional mission of conducting military justice in the service.  The demands of our services, however, have meant a shift in focus to operational law.  Today's needs might not have been obvious 15 or 20 years ago, but it was the forethought of our services' past leaders that built the required flexibility into our legal services and built the skills and adaptability that has made us successful.

Similarly, figure out what your organization's or your client's worst-case scenario might be and plan for it.  For a judge advocate at a Brigade Combat Team that might mean planning for the death of a Soldier; for an Aviation Brigade judge advocate it might mean planning for an aircraft accident in a populated area; and for a judge advocate service an installation, it might mean planning for a natural disaster.  In any case, consider what event(s) will be the hardest - for you, your team, and your client - and then spend some time planning and preparing for it.  Even if you don't need to "break the glass" on your worst-case-plan, your successor might benefit from your work.  When it comes to this type of work, be prepared to pay it forward (suck up the time and the effort to make someone else successful).

Great thoughts, applicable in just about any job.