Advisory Opinion Rebuttal: How to Answer the Board’s Own Expert
You filed your petition, waited months, and then a letter arrived. The board asked a service agency to review your case, and that agency recommended denial. This is the moment your case turns. An advisory opinion rebuttal is your written answer to that recommendation, and it is usually the last substantive document...
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Discharge Upgrade Denied? What to Do Next
A discharge upgrade denied by a review board feels final, but it usually is not. The letter in your hand is one step in a layered system. Each layer applies a different standard and runs on a different clock. Some of those doors close quickly. Others stay open for years. This article...
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MST Discharge Upgrade: What Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma Should Know
By Kevin Courtney, Esq. | Former USMC Judge Advocate | California Attorney If sexual assault or sexual harassment during your service set off the events that ended your career, the discharge on your DD-214 may not be the final word. An MST discharge upgrade asks a military...
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CBD Discharge Upgrade: What the New Bass Decision Means If a Legal Product Ended Your Career
If a CBD oil or a delta-8 gummy caused the positive THC test that ended your military career, a CBD discharge upgrade may now be within reach. In June 2026, the military’s highest court decided United States v. Bass. The court held that a positive urinalysis for hemp-derived THC, standing alone, cannot...
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TBI Discharge Upgrade: How a Brain Injury Can Change Your Discharge
By Kevin Courtney, Esq. | Former USMC Judge Advocate | California Attorney If a brain injury changed your behavior in uniform and that behavior ended your career, the law gives you a real path forward. A TBI discharge upgrade asks a military review board to reconsider your...
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Alcohol-Related Discharge Upgrade: The Childhood Trauma and Combat Connection
By Kevin Courtney, Esq. | Former USMC Judge Advocate | California Attorney If your less-than-honorable discharge traces back to drinking, you are not looking at a lost cause. An alcohol-related discharge upgrade is often possible. The key is showing that the drinking was a symptom of a condition the...
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Discharge Upgrade Denied? What to Do Next
By Kevin Courtney, Esq. | Former USMC Judge Advocate | California Attorney If your discharge upgrade was denied, take a breath. For most veterans, a denial is not the end of the road. Many veterans believe a discharge upgrade denied once is denied for good. That is...
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Army Discharge Review Board PTSD Decisions: Three 2025 Cases That Reveal How the Board Reasons
By Kevin Courtney, Esq. | Former USMC Judge Advocate | California Attorney If you have searched for help with a PTSD-based discharge upgrade, you have probably read a dozen summaries of the Kurta and Hagel memos. What is harder to find is a careful read of how...
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What Liberal Consideration Really Means for Your PTSD Discharge Upgrade
By Kevin Courtney, Esq. | Former USMC Judge Advocate | California Attorney If a review board denied your discharge upgrade application, you may have seen the phrase “liberal consideration” scattered throughout its written decision. You may have assumed the board applied the standard. In March 2026, a...
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How to Upgrade a Bad Conduct Discharge from the Army
By Kevin Courtney, Esq. | Former Judge Advocate (JAG) | California Attorney A bad conduct discharge from the Army follows you long after you take off the uniform. It cuts off VA healthcare, blocks federal employment, and sits on your record as the product of a criminal...
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Types of Military Discharge: What Each One Means and Why It Matters
Your discharge characterization is one of the most consequential labels the military can place on your service record — and most service members don’t fully understand the different types of military discharge until they are already facing separation. Whether you are currently serving and worried about what is ahead, or you separated...
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Best Evidence for Discharge Upgrade: What Military Boards Actually Want to See
When you apply for a discharge upgrade, you're not trying to satisfy a bureaucratic checklist. You're trying to persuade a group of military officers that the original discharge was either improper or unjust. That persuasion lives or dies on the strength of your evidence. After years defending service members...
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