# General Counsel of the Department of Defense

The general counsel of the Department of Defense is the chief legal officer of the Department of Defense (DoD), advising both the Secretary and Deputy Secretary on all legal matters and services, and providing legal advice to Office of the Secretary of Defense organizations and, as appropriate, other DOD components.
The general counsel develops the department's Legislative Program and coordinates DoD positions on legislation and Executive Orders; coordinates the appeals process for denied FOIA requests; oversees the performance and standards of DoD attorneys; establishes policy on general legal issues and determines the DoD position on specific legal problems; maintains repository for all international agreements coordinated, negotiated, or concluded by DoD personnel; and is "dual-hatted" as director of the Defense Legal Services Agency.
This position was established by Reorganization Plan No. 6 of 1953 and by Defense Directive 5145.1, signed 24 August 1953. The position derived its responsibilities from one of the original three Special Assistants to the Secretary (established in 1947) and the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Legal and Legislative Affairs) (established in 1949).

## Office holders

General Counsels of the Department of Defense :
| Name | Tenure | SecDef(s) served under | President(s) served under |
| H. Struve Hensel | August 17, 1953 – March 4, 1954 | Charles Erwin Wilson | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Wilber M. Brucker | April 23, 1954 – July 20, 1955 | Charles Erwin Wilson | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Mansfield D. Sprague | October 6, 1955 – February 27, 1957 | Charles Erwin Wilson | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Robert Dechert | February 28, 1957 – July 15, 1959 | Charles Erwin Wilson Neil H. McElroy | Dwight Eisenhower |
| J. Vincent Burke Jr. | September 14, 1959 – January 20, 1961 | Neil H. McElroy Thomas S. Gates | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Cyrus Vance | January 29, 1961 – June 30, 1962 | Robert S. McNamara | John F. Kennedy |
| John McNaughton | July 5, 1962 – June 25, 1964 | Robert S. McNamara | John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Johnson |
| Leonard Niederlehner (Acting) | July 1, 1964 – September 19, 1966 | Robert S. McNamara | Lyndon B. Johnson |
| Paul Warnke | October 3, 1966 – July 31, 1967 | Robert S. McNamara | Lyndon B. Johnson |
| Leonard Niederlehner (Acting) | August 1, 1967 – August 20, 1970 | Robert S. McNamara Clark Clifford Melvin Laird | Lyndon B. Johnson Richard Nixon |
| J. Fred Buzhardt | August 20, 1970 – January 4, 1974 | Melvin Laird Elliot Richardson James R. Schlesinger | Richard Nixon |
| Leonard Niederlehner (Acting) | May 22, 1973 – March 13, 1974 | James R. Schlesinger | Richard Nixon |
| Martin Richard Hoffmann | March 14, 1974 – August 5, 1975 | James R. Schlesinger | Richard Nixon Gerald Ford |
| Leonard Niederlehner (Acting) | August 6, 1975 – January 1, 1976 | James R. Schlesinger Donald Rumsfeld | Gerald Ford |
| Richard A. Wiley | January 2, 1976 – January 15, 1977 | Donald Rumsfeld | Gerald Ford |
| Deanne C. Siemer | April 28, 1977 – October 15, 1979 | Harold Brown | Jimmy Carter |
| Leonard Niederlehner (Acting) | October 15, 1979 – February 1, 1980 | Harold Brown | Jimmy Carter |
| Togo D. West Jr. | February 1, 1980 – January 20, 1981 | Harold Brown | Jimmy Carter |
| Leonard Niederlehner (Acting) | January 20, 1981 – April 1, 1981 | Caspar Weinberger | Ronald Reagan |
| William Howard Taft IV | April 2, 1981 – May 2, 1984 | Caspar Weinberger | Ronald Reagan |
| Chapman B. Cox | May 3, 1984 – December 16, 1985 | Caspar Weinberger | Ronald Reagan |
| Henry L. Garrett III | February 5, 1986 – August 6, 1987 | Caspar Weinberger | Ronald Reagan |
| Leonard Niederlehner (Acting) | August 7, 1987 – October 25, 1987 | Caspar Weinberger | Ronald Reagan |
| Kathleen A. Buck | October 26, 1987 – December 30, 1989 | Caspar Weinberger Frank Carlucci William Howard Taft IV Dick Cheney | Ronald Reagan George H. W. Bush |
| Terrence O'Donnell | October 30, 1989 – March 6, 1992 | Dick Cheney | George H. W. Bush |
| C. Paul Beach Jr. (Acting) | March 7, 1992 – August 11, 1992 | Dick Cheney | George H. W. Bush |
| David Addington | August 12, 1992 – January 20, 1993 | Dick Cheney | George H. W. Bush |
| John H. McNeil (Acting) | January 20, 1993 – May 5, 1993 | Les Aspin | Bill Clinton |
| Jamie Gorelick | May 5, 1993 – March 17, 1994 | Lee Aspin William Perry | Bill Clinton |
| Stephen W. Preston (Acting) | March 28, 1994 – September 28, 1994 | William Perry | Bill Clinton |
| Judith A. Miller | September 29, 1994 – November 7, 1999 | William Perry William Cohen | Bill Clinton |
| Douglas A. Dworkin | November 7, 1999 – June 14, 2000 (Acting) June 14, 2000 – January 19, 2001 | William Cohen | Bill Clinton |
| William J. Haynes II | May 24, 2001 – February 26, 2008 | Donald Rumsfeld Robert Gates | George W. Bush |
| Jeh Johnson | February 10, 2009 – December 31, 2012 | Robert Gates Leon Panetta | Barack Obama |
| Robert S. Taylor (Acting) | January 1, 2013 – October 25, 2013 | Leon Panetta Chuck Hagel | Barack Obama |
| Stephen W. Preston | October 25, 2013 – June 2015 | Chuck Hagel Ashton Carter | Barack Obama |
| Robert S. Taylor (Acting) | June 2015 – June 14, 2016 | Ashton Carter | Barack Obama |
| Jennifer M. O'Connor | June 14, 2016 – January, 20 2017 | Ashton Carter | Barack Obama |
| William S. Castle (Acting) | August 2017 – August 20, 2018 | James Mattis | Donald Trump |
| Paul C. Ney Jr. | August 20, 2018 – January 20, 2021 | James Mattis Mark Esper Christopher C. Miller (acting) | Donald Trump |
| Beth George (Acting) | January 20, 2021 – August 2, 2021 | David Norquist (acting) Lloyd Austin | Joe Biden |
| Caroline Krass | August 2, 2021 – January 20, 2025 | Lloyd Austin | Joe Biden |
| Charles L. Young III (acting) | January 20, 2025 – Present | Pete Hegseth | Donald Trump |