United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals In the United States military , the Army Court of Criminal Appeals ( ACCA ) is an appellate court that reviews certain court martial convictions of Army personnel . Jurisdiction . In the United States , Courts - martial are conducted under the Uniform Code of Military Justice ( UCMJ ) , 10 U . S . C . § § 801 – 946 , and the Manual for Courts - Martial . If the trial results in a conviction , the case is reviewed by the convening authority – the person who referred the case for trial by court - martial . The convening authority has discretion to mitigate the findings and sentence . If the sentence , as approved by the convening authority , includes death , a bad - conduct discharge , a dishonorable discharge , dismissal of an officer , or confinement for one year or more , the case is reviewed by an intermediate court . There are four such courts – the Army Court of Criminal Appeals , the Navy - Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals , the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals , and the Coast Guard Court of Criminal Appeals . After review by any of these intermediate courts , the next level of appeal is the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces ( CAAF ) . History . In 1951 , The Judge Advocate General of the Army established this Court ' s predecessor , the U . S . Army Boards of Review , pursuant to Article 66 , Uniform Code of Military Justice ( UCMJ ) , enacted by the U . S . Congress in 1950 . The UCMJ empowered the Boards to " weigh the evidence , judge the credibility of witnesses , and determine controverted questions of fact , recognizing that the trial court saw and heard the witnesses . " It also charged each Board with affirm [ ing ] only such findings of guilty and the sentence or such part or amount of the sentence , as it finds correct in law and fact and determines , on the basis of the entire record , should be approved . " Finally , the UCMJ made the decisions of the Army Boards of Military Review binding on The Judge Advocate General and , by implication , binding on the Secretary of the Army and the President as well . The Military Justice Act of 1968 redesignated the Boards of Review as Courts of Military Review and provided each service court with a chief judge , appointed by The Judge Advocate General , and enabled the court to either sit en banc or in panels , empowering the chief judge to designate the senior , or presiding , judge for each panel . The All Writs Act empowers the court to issue extraordinary writs , such as habeas corpus , mandamus , and prohibition , in aid of its jurisdiction . The Military Justice Act of 1983 gave the court additional power to entertain interlocutory appeals by the Government from certain adverse trial rulings by the military judge . Congress also expanded the authority of The Judge Advocate General under UCMJ Article 69 ( a ) to refer to the Court records of trial other than those automatically reviewed by that Court under Article 66 . In 1994 , the U . S . Army Court of Military Review was renamed the U . S . Army Court of Criminal Appeals . This coincided with the renaming of the U . S . Court of Military Appeals to the U . S . Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces ( CAAF ) . More recently , The Judge Advocate General , by regulation , granted tenure to the appellate judges serving on the Army court , as well as the trial judges . Operation . Presently , the Army Court of Criminal Appeals is composed of three judicial panels , each with three appellate judges ( one of which is the senior judge ) , a commissioner , and paralegal . The Chief Judge , while not assigned full - time to a single panel , sits on cases with judges from all three panels and has his own commissioner . The military justice system commonly uses four writs : mandamus , prohibition , error coram nobis , and habeas corpus . A writ of mandamus is an order from a court of competent jurisdiction that requires the performance of a specified act by an inferior court or authority . The writ of prohibition is used to prevent the commission of a specified act or issuance of a particular order . The writ of error " coram nobis " is used to bring an issue before the court that previously decided the same issue . It allows the court to review error of fact or a retroactive change in the law that which affects the validity of the prior proceeding . The writ of habeas corpus is used to challenge either the legal basis for or the manner of confinement . The court has the statutory authority to determine whether the findings of guilty and the sentence are correct in law and fact for all courts - martial reviewed under Article 66 , UCMJ ( about 96 % of the Court ' s work ) , and to take corrective action if prejudicial error has occurred . Such action includes setting aside or modifying the findings and / or the sentence , ordering a rehearing , and dismissing charges and specifications . Unless reversed by a higher court , such action is binding on all parties , including all officials of the United States . The court ' s published opinions are binding precedent for the conduct of courts - martial in the Army . The Courts of Criminal Appeals review cases for legal error , factual sufficiency , and sentence appropriateness . All other cases are subject to review by judge advocates under regulations issued by each service . After such review , the Judge Advocate General may refer a case to the appropriate Court of Criminal Appeals . The Courts of Criminal Appeals also have jurisdiction under Article 62 of the UCMJ to consider appeals by the United States of certain judicial rulings during trial . Review under Article 62 is limited to issues involving alleged legal errors . Bluebook citation form for this Court is provided in Table T . 1 ( A . Ct . Crim . App . ) , " The Bluebook : A Uniform System of Citation " ( Columbia law Review Ass ' n et al . eds , 18th ed . 2005 ) . The official reporters are West ' s " Military Justice Reporter " ( M . J . ) ( 1975 – date ) and " Court Martial Reports " ( C . M . R . ) ( 1951 – 1975 ) .