Judge Advocate General (Canada)

The Office of the Judge Advocate General for the Canadian Forces provides legal advice to commanders at bases and wings, provides lawyers who defend accused persons at courts martial, teaches courses to other CF members or advises a commanding officer in an operational theatre to uphold the ethical and legal principles established by both the Canadian Forces and the Government of Canada. The current JAG of the Canadian Forces is Major-General B. Blaise Cathcart.

The office consists of 159 regular force legal officer positions and 64 reserve force legal officer positions. Regular force legal officers are deployed as follows:


 * National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa
 * Eight Assistant Judge Advocate General (AJAG) offices, seven in Canada and one in Germany
 * Ten Deputy Judge Advocate (DJA) offices across Canada
 * Four Regional Military Prosecutor (RMP) offices across Canada
 * Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe in Belgium
 * Canadian Forces Military Law Centre at the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) in Kingston, Ontario
 * JAG Legal Center and School (U.S Army), Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.A.
 * Deputy Commander-in-Chief North American Aerospace Defence Command Headquarters (in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA)
 * with CF contingents deployed overseas — during 2009–2010, at locations in Afghanistan, the Gulf of Oman, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan and Haiti;
 * in training with CF formations and units participating in major national and international exercises.

List of JAG

 * 1) Major-General Henry Smith, 1911-1918
 * 2) Lieutenant-Colonel Oliver Mowat Biggar, 1918-1920
 * 3) Brigadier Reginald John Orde, 1920-1950
 * 4) Brigadier-General William J. Lawson, 1950-1969
 * 5) Brigadier-General Harold A. McLearn,1969-1972
 * 6) Brigadier-General James M. Simpson, 1972-1976
 * 7) Major-General John Patterson Wolfe, 1976-1982
 * 8) Brigadier-General Frank Karwandy, 1982-1986
 * 9) Brigadier-General Robert L. Martin, 1986-1990
 * 10) Commodore Peter R. Partner, 1990-1993
 * 11) Brigadier-General Pierre G. Boutet, 1993-1998
 * 12) Brigadier-General Jerry S.T. Pitzul, 1998-2006
 * 13) Brigadier-General Ken Watkin, 2006-2010
 * 14) Major-General B. Blaise Cathcart, 2010 – Present