Legal Guide
Military Character Letter. How to Write One That Works.
Character letters are submitted in AdSep proceedings, courts-martial, BOI hearings, and discharge upgrade petitions. A generic letter of praise rarely moves a panel. A specific, credible letter from a credible source can. Here's the difference.
Matthew Thomas, Esq.
Former Marine Judge Advocate · 2× USMC Defense Counsel of the Year
Overview
A military character letter is a written statement submitted on behalf of a service member facing NJP, administrative separation, court-martial, board of inquiry, or discharge upgrade proceedings. It is addressed to the commanding officer, the separation board, the military judge, or the review board depending on the proceeding. A strong character letter from a credible source, written with specificity, can influence the outcome. A generic letter of praise rarely moves anyone.
Character letters are used across every category of military legal proceedings. At NJP, a letter from a senior NCO or officer who knows the service member's duty performance provides context that the commanding officer may not have. At an administrative separation board, character letters help build the service record narrative that argues for retention or a better characterization of discharge. At a court-martial, character letters are submitted during sentencing to establish the service member's value to the military and the community. At a discharge review board or BCMR, character letters support the petition for upgrade.
The difference between a letter that moves a panel and a letter that gets skimmed and set aside is specificity. A letter that says 'Sergeant Smith is a great Marine' does nothing. A letter that says 'I served with Sergeant Smith in 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines during deployment to Helmand Province in 2012. He was the point man on 47 combat patrols without incident. When our squad leader was wounded, Smith took control of the fire team and evacuated the casualty under fire.' That letter moves a board. Specific incidents, specific dates, specific observations of character under pressure.
Matthew coordinates character letter strategy as part of every NJP, ADSEP, court-martial, and BOI defense. He identifies who should write, what each letter should address, and how the collection of letters builds the complete narrative the panel needs to see. Character letters are not a standalone exercise. They are one component of a defense strategy.
A letter that says 'great Marine' does nothing. A letter that describes a specific moment of character under pressure moves a board.Matthew Thomas, Esq. — Military Character Letter
What You Need to Know
Read this before you do anything.
01
What is a military character letter?
A written statement submitted on behalf of a service member facing a military legal proceeding. It speaks to the service member's character, duty performance, and value to the military. It is addressed to the decision-maker: the commanding officer at NJP, the separation board at ADSEP, the military judge at court-martial, or the review board at a discharge upgrade hearing.
02
When military character letters are used
NJP / Article 15 hearings: submitted to the commanding officer as part of the defense and mitigation presentation. Administrative separation boards: submitted as documentary evidence during the board hearing. Courts-martial: submitted during the sentencing phase after a finding of guilty. Board of inquiry proceedings: submitted as part of the officer's defense. Discharge upgrade petitions: submitted to the DRB or BCMR as supporting evidence.
03
Who should write a military character letter
Commanding officers and supervisors who have directly observed the service member's duty performance. Senior NCOs and SNCOs who have served alongside the service member. Peers who can speak to specific incidents of character or leadership. Mentors, chaplains, or counselors who have observed personal growth. Family members who can speak to the service member's character outside the uniform. Each writer should address a different aspect of the service member's character and service. Avoid repetition across letters.
04
What to include in a military character letter
The writer's name, rank, and relationship to the service member. How long the writer has known the service member and in what capacity. Specific incidents or observations that demonstrate character, reliability, or professional competence. Direct knowledge of the service member's duty performance: deployment history, specific missions, leadership moments, training accomplishments. If the writer is aware of the misconduct, a measured acknowledgment that the letter is written with knowledge of the situation. A clear statement of the writer's opinion: whether the service member should be retained, what characterization is appropriate, or why the record deserves correction.
05
What boards and commanders actually look for
Specificity over generality. A board that reads 'great soldier' fifty times sees nothing. A board that reads about a specific incident where the service member demonstrated integrity, leadership, or selflessness under pressure remembers that letter. Credibility of the writer matters: a letter from a battalion commander carries more weight than a letter from a college roommate. Direct observation matters more than secondhand reputation. The best character letters describe what the writer personally saw, not what they heard from others.
06
What NOT to include in a military character letter
Legal arguments or opinions about the case. Commentary on whether the charges are justified. Threats or demands. Emotional appeals without factual grounding. Generic praise without specific examples. Information the service member's attorney has not reviewed. A letter that makes legal arguments undermines the attorney's strategy. A letter that attacks the command or the process alienates the decision-maker.
07
How Matthew coordinates character letters
Matthew identifies who should write, what each letter should address, and provides guidance to each writer on tone, content, and what the specific proceeding requires. For ADSEP boards, the letters are part of a broader documentary package that includes the service record, fitness reports, awards, and rebuttal evidence. For courts-martial, character witnesses testify in addition to submitting letters. The character letter strategy is one component of the complete defense preparation.
In This Guide
Section 01
When Character Letters Are Submitted
Character letters are submitted in several types of military legal proceedings: administrative separation boards (ADSEP boards), courts-martial panels (during sentencing), boards of inquiry (BOI) for officers, discharge upgrade petitions to the Discharge Review Board (DRB) or Board for Correction of Military Records (BCMR), and security clearance proceedings where personal character and judgment are at issue.
Each proceeding has different standards for what character evidence is relevant and how it is weighed. An ADSEP board considers character evidence alongside the underlying basis for separation. A court-martial panel considers character evidence primarily at sentencing. A BCMR petition considers character evidence as part of the overall record supporting relief. Matthew advises clients on what type of character evidence is most valuable in each specific proceeding.
Section 02
What Makes a Character Letter Credible
A credible character letter comes from a credible source who knows the subject in a specific, relevant context. The highest-weight letters in a military proceeding typically come from: senior officers (especially commanding officers) who supervised the subject directly, senior NCOs who worked closely with the subject in a leadership or operational context, chaplains or medical officers who have specific insight into the subject's character, and civilian employers or supervisors who can speak to conduct outside the military context.
What makes a letter credible is specificity. A letter that says 'SSgt Smith is a fine Marine and I recommend retention' carries almost no weight. A letter that describes a specific incident, a specific leadership challenge, a specific act of moral courage or professional excellence, and draws a connection between that specific conduct and the writer's assessment of the subject's character, is substantively different. The board reading these letters can tell the difference instantly.
The writer's rank and relationship to the subject matter, but they are not everything. A well-written letter from a peer who describes a specific incident carries more weight than a generic letter from a colonel who barely knew the subject. Authenticity, specificity, and relevance to the proceeding's issues are what move panels.
Section 03
What to Avoid in a Character Letter
Generic praise. Any letter that reads like a template, that could have been written for any Marine by any writer without specific knowledge of the subject, is discounted immediately. Boards read hundreds of these. They can recognize a fill-in-the-blank letter within the first two sentences.
Argument. The letter writer's job is to describe what they know about the subject's character from their direct experience. It is not to argue the legal merits of the case or tell the board what decision to reach. Letters that editorialize about the fairness of the proceedings, dispute the underlying facts, or tell the board they should retain the service member are often counterproductive.
Exaggeration. A letter that characterizes an E-4 as 'the best Marine I've served with in 20 years' is not credible to a panel that has seen hundreds of such letters. Grounded, honest, specific assessments are far more effective than superlatives.
Irrelevant information. A letter about what a good husband and father the service member is may be touching, but it does not address the specific issues in a court-martial or ADSEP proceeding. Character letters should speak to the specific concerns raised in the proceeding whenever possible.
Brief Writers on What the Proceeding Is About
The most effective character letters address, directly or indirectly, the specific character concerns raised in the proceeding. Brief your letter writers on the proceeding's issues so they can write to relevant points without tipping into argument.
Section 04
How Many Letters to Submit
More letters does not mean more weight. A submission of 25 generic letters is worth less than 5 specific, credible ones. Defense counsel who submit large volumes of undifferentiated character letters are often doing their clients a disservice; volume can suggest that each individual letter is not strong enough to stand on its own.
For an ADSEP board, 5-10 strong letters from credible sources who can speak to specific conduct is typically appropriate. For a courts-martial sentencing, the same. For a BCMR petition, the evidentiary record is the primary vehicle and character letters supplement it. For security clearance proceedings, personal character evidence from professional supervisors addressing judgment and reliability in specific work contexts is most relevant.
Related Services
Related Practice Areas
Administrative Separation Defense
Character evidence is a core component of ADSEP board defense strategy.
Learn More →
Court-Martial Defense
Character letters matter most at sentencing in a court-martial proceeding.
Learn More →
Military Discharge Upgrades
Character evidence supports discharge upgrade petitions to the DRB and BCMR.
Learn More →
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
People who know you well in a professional or leadership context and who can speak specifically to your character in the relevant domain. Senior supervisors, commanding officers, NCOs who worked directly with you, civilian employers, and professional mentors are typically the most credible sources. Family members can write letters, but they are generally given less weight than professional contacts because the relationship is not arm's-length.
Generally no. The letter writer should not attempt to dispute the facts of the underlying conduct unless they have direct, relevant knowledge. Addressing the underlying conduct risks making the letter look like advocacy rather than character testimony, and letter writers who dispute facts they don't have personal knowledge of can damage credibility. The letter should speak to the writer's direct knowledge of the subject's character.
Yes. Matthew reviews draft character letters to assess their likely impact on the specific proceeding and advises on whether they address the relevant issues effectively. He does not ghostwrite letters, but he can brief potential letter writers on what a credible, effective letter looks like and what the proceeding is focused on.
Yes, significantly. Administrative separation boards consider the service record as a whole, including awards, performance evaluations, letters of commendation, and character references. A service member with an outstanding record who made a single mistake is in a very different position than a service member with a marginal record facing the same conduct. Matthew incorporates the full service record into the ADSEP defense strategy.
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Questions About Your Specific Situation?
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