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Title 10 — Armed ForcesRelease 119-73not60

§938 Art. 138. Complaints of Wrongs

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— General Military Law › Part II— PERSONNEL › Chapter 47— UNIFORM CODE OF MILITARY JUSTICE › Subchapter XI— MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS › § 938

Last updated Apr 3, 2026|Official source

Summary

If a service member feels wronged by their commanding officer and that officer refuses to fix it after a proper request, the service member may complain to any higher-ranking commissioned officer. That higher officer must send the complaint to the officer who has general court-martial authority over the accused officer. The officer with that authority must investigate, try to right the wrong, and, as soon as possible, send the Secretary concerned a truthful statement of the complaint and what was done about it.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §938

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Any member of the armed forces who believes himself wronged by his commanding officer, and who, upon due application to that commanding officer, is refused redress, may complain to any superior commissioned officer, who shall forward the complaint to the officer exercising general court-martial jurisdiction over the officer against whom it is made. The officer exercising general court-martial jurisdiction shall examine into the complaint and take proper measures for redressing the wrong complained of; and he shall, as soon as possible, send to the Secretary concerned a true statement of that complaint, with the proceedings had thereon.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised sectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 93850:734.May 5, 1950, ch. 169, § 1 (Art. 138), 64 Stat. 144. The words “commanding officer” are substituted for the word “commander”. The word “who” is inserted after the word “and”. The word “commissioned” is inserted after the word “superior” for clarity. The words “The officer exercising general court-martial jurisdiction” are substituted for the words “That officer” for clarity. The word “send” is substituted for the word “transmit”. The word “Secretary” is substituted for the word “Department” for accuracy, since the “Department”, as an entity, could not act upon the complaint.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 938

Title 10 — Armed Forces

Last Updated

Apr 3, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60