Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit ( LOM ) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements . The decoration is issued both to United States military personnel and to military and political figures of foreign governments . The Legion of Merit ( Commander degree ) is one of only two United States military decorations to be issued as a neck order ( the other being the Medal of Honor ) and the only United States decoration which may be issued in award degrees ( much like an order of chivalry or certain Orders of Merit ) . The Legion of Merit is sixth in the order of precedence of U . S . Military awards and is worn after the Defense Superior Service Medal and before the Distinguished Flying Cross . In contemporary use in the U . S . Armed Forces , the Legion of Merit is typically awarded to Army , Marine Corps , and Air Force general officers and colonel s , and Navy and Coast Guard flag officers and captain s occupying command or very senior staff positions in their respective services . It may also be awarded to officers of lesser rank and to very senior enlisted personnel , but these instances are less frequent and circumstances vary by branch of service . As such , the medal can be considered as " points " in some enlisted promotion systems , such as the Air Force , where it is counted as seven points ( out of a possible 25 points for decorations ) . However , since the rare enlisted recipients are typically at the pinnacle of the enlisted pay grades ( i . e . , E - 9 ) , the utility of such points is marginal . The degrees and the design of the decoration were clearly influenced by the French Legion of Honor ( Légion d ' honneur ) . History . Although recommendations for creation of a Meritorious Service Medal were initiated as early as September 1937 , no formal action was taken toward approval . In a letter to the Quartermaster General ( QMG ) dated December 24 , 1941 , the Adjutant General formally requested action be initiated to create a Meritorious Service Medal and provide designs in the event the decoration was established . Proposed designs prepared by Bailey , Banks , and Biddle and the Office of the Quartermaster General were provided to Assistant Chief of Staff ( G1 ) ( Colonel Heard ) by the QMG on January 5 , 1942 . The Assistant Chief of Staff ( G1 ) ( BG Hilldring ) , in a response to the QMG on April 3 , 1942 , indicated the Secretary of War approved the design recommended by the QMG . The design of the Legion of Merit ( change of name ) would be ready for issue immediately after legislation authorizing it was enacted into law . ( A separate Meritorius Service Medal was established in 1969 . ) An Act of Congress ( Public Law 671 — 77th Congress , Chapter 508 , 2d Session ) on July 20 , 1942 , established the Legion of Merit and provided that the medal " shall have suitable appurtenances and devices and not more than four degrees , and which the President , under such rules and regulations as he shall prescribe , may award to The medal was announced in War Department Bulletin No . 40 , dated August 5 , 1942 . Executive Order 9260 , dated October 29 , 1942 , by President Franklin D . Roosevelt , established the rules for the Legion of Merit and required the President ' s approval for the award . However , in 1943 , at the request of General George C . Marshall , approval authority for U . S . personnel was delegated to the War Department . Executive Order 10600 , dated March 15 , 1955 , by President Dwight D . Eisenhower , revised approval authority . Current provisions are contained in Title 10 , United States Code 1121 . The reverse of the medal has the motto taken from the Great Seal of the United States , " " ( " He [ God ] Has Favored Our Undertakings " ) and the date " " ( 1782 ) which is the date of America ' s first decoration , the Badge of Military Merit , now known as the Purple Heart . The ribbon design also follows the pattern of the Purple Heart ribbon . Notable recipients . Legionnaire . " When the Legion of Merit is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States it is awarded without reference to degree . The medal and ribbon of this forth degree ( Legionnaire ) is used for such purpose though . "