Legal Assistance Office

To schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys, please contact FLW_LAO@army.mil or call (573) 596-0629. Please have your DOD Number ready.

WALK-IN SERVICE available anytime during normal hours of operations for TRAINEES, NOTARY SERVICES, and POWERS OF ATTORNEY SERVICES. All other legal assistance services are available by appointment only.

TYPES OF APPOINTMENTS: Telephonic, In-Person, and TEAMS.

WHAT TO BRING TO THE APPOINTMENT: Your DOD ID

For In-Person appointments you must arrive 10 minutes prior to the scheduled appointment time. Please note that arriving 10 minutes late for scheduled appointments will result in the cancellation of the appointment and be reflected as a “no show” for future scheduling reference.

If you are represented by a private attorney, our attorneys will not see you nor provide any legal advice to you. Unless your private attorney contacts our office via email toFLW_LAO@army.mil and once the boundaries of the advice is secured, our office will contact you to schedule an appointment.

Wills, trusts and estate law gives you the power to make a plan to decide who will receive your money and property after you die. It helps to protect your assets if you become ill, and allows you to choose the people you would like to be in charge of your money and property. It also gives you final say about difficult health and financial decisions that may come up during your life.

• For a brief rundown of the will drafting process, click HERE.
• Prior to scheduling an appointment to speak to one of our attorneys, print and complete the questionnaire found HERE.
• Once the form is completed, return it to our office. You may return the questionnaire via certified mail, email, or hand delivery during our normal hours of operation. Once the questionnaire is received in our office, you will be contacted to schedule an in-person appointment with an attorney. At the in-person appointment: 1) an attorney will go over the draft copy of your Will and any powers of attorney, answer your questions, and make any necessary changes or corrections. At the end of the appointment the final draft of the Will and powers of attorney will be executed, witnessed, and notarized.

If you are considering a divorce, speaking with a Legal Assistance Attorney will prepare you for the road ahead. By helping you define your goals, we can help you move ahead from a position of strength while protecting your interests.

If you are represented by a private attorney, due to the rules of ethics, our attorneys cannot advise you and you will not be allowed to schedule an appointment. If you spouse has hired private counsel, you are advised to seek private counsel as soon as possible. Although our attorneys may give you general advice, Army regulations and staffing considerations do not permit for in court representation of you. We strongly advise against representing yourself if your spouse has hired private counsel.

• For a brief rundown of the divorce process and spousal support in Missouri, click HERE.
• All the forms necessary for a divorce can be found at the Missouri Courts website, click HERE.

As a Service Member, you are protected under the Service Member Civil Relief Act and allowed to break your lease in many cases. Additionally, Missouri law also provides further protections for Service Members.

• For protections afforded to Service Member tenants, click HERE.

The Service Member Credit Relief Act (SCRA) is a federal law that provides protections for military members as they enter active duty. It covers issues such as rental agreements, security deposits, prepaid rent, evictions, installment contracts, credit card interest rates, mortgage interest rates, mortgage foreclosures, civil judicial proceedings, automobile leases, life insurance, health insurance and income tax payments.

• For an SCRA Repossession of Vehicle, click HERE.
• For a Early Lease Termination fact sheet, click HERE.

The Missouri New Vehicles Warranty Law, commonly called the “Lemon Law,” protects buyers of new vehicles by enforcing the manufacturer’s express warranty. The Lemon Law does not apply to used cars.

• For a Missouri Lemon Law Fact Sheet, click HERE.

A letter of reprimand (LOR) is an administrative censure given to a Soldier for a failure to comply with established standards. A General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand, known as a GOMOR, is a reprimand issue by a general officer. A letter of reprimand may be filed in either the local file, officially known as your Military Personnel Record Jacket (MPRJ), or the Army Military Human Resource Record (AMHRR) (formerly the OMPF). Letters filed locally may remain for up to 18 months or until you are reassigned to a new general court-martial jurisdiction, whichever is sooner. A reprimand filed in a Soldier’s AMHRR, regardless of the issuing authority, can only be filed upon the order of a general officer, or by direction of an officer having general court-martial jurisdiction over the Soldier. Letters filed in your AMHRR are permanently placed in the performance section and will likely adversely affect your military career in the future.

• For a brief rundown of the GOMOR process and how to appeal, click HERE.
• If you believe your Commander is acting unfairly towards you, you might consider filing an Article 138 complaint. For more information, click HERE.

Titling is an operational decision, not a legal decision, that can adversely affect your Army or civilian career. All it takes to be "titled" is the existence of credible information that is determined by the CID agent.

• For a brief rundown of the titling process, click HERE.
• For a more in depth PowerPoint, click HERE.
• For an Army Lawyer article regarding titles, click HERE.

A Financial Liability Investigation of Property Loss (FLIPL)is the manner in which the Army accounts for the circumstances surrounding the loss, damage or destruction (LDD) of Government property. The FLIPL serves as documentation allowing for the adjustment of property books. The FLIPL also documents a charge or relief from financial liability.

• For a brief rundown of the FLIPL appeal process, click HERE.

The Qualitative Management Program (QMP) is used to identify and screen, for denial of service, NCOs (E6 thru E9), whose performance, conduct, and potential for advancement do not meet Army standard.

• For a brief rundown of the QMP process, click HERE.

Adoption and Guardianship

Congratulations on your decision to adopt. The DOD currently offers incentives for adoption in the form of reimbursing the cost to adopt.

• For more information on the DOD's adoption reimbursement program, click HERE.
• For more information on guardianship laws in Missouri, click HERE.

Here at Fort Leonard Wood, we have an expanded Legal Assistance Office for Survivors that allows us to appear in court to get civilian orders of protection. Please give us a call or come in to the office to speak to an attorney if you feel that you are facing domestic violence.

Due to a number of additional requirements being added to our legal assistance attorney’s portfolio, including assisting victims of domestic violence, advocating for tenants in privatized housing, and explaining legal rights to education access. The Fort Leonard Wood Legal Assistance Office will no longer provide tax preparation services except for the dependents of Surviving Families.

Services will remain available on substantive tax questions (e.g. tax controversies or issues pending before the IRS). Therefore, if you receive a notification of an issue from the tax authority, please schedule an appointment for assistance

The Tax Center will be available in the OSJA building during the tax season, however, it will not be hosted by the Legal Assistance Office

The following persons are eligible to receive legal assistance pursuant to AR 27-3, 2-4:

• Active duty members of the Armed Forces of the United States and their dependents.
• Reserve component members of the Armed Forces who are serving on active duty pursuant to orders for more than 29 days and their dependents.
• Reserve component members of the Armed Forces who are serving on active duty pursuant to orders for 29 days or less and their dependents, as approved on an individual basis. Assistance will only be provided for premobilization issues and personal legal problems and needs that may adversely affe3cct readiness or that have arisen from or been aggravated by military service, including military administrative matters.
• Military retirees and their dependents.
• Surviving family members of active component and retired members of the Armed Forces (see para 2-5 a(5)).
• Department of Defense civilian employees for assistance with reports of survey. Additional assistance will be available on a case-by-case basis for those DoD employees who are classified as mission essential or emergency essential IAW AR 27-3, para 2-5a(6)(e).
• Primary next of kin for matters relating to the settlement of the estates of active and reserve component Service members who die while in a military duty status and for DoD civilians who die while serving outside the U.S. with the Armed Forces.
• Fiduciaries, including those who hold powers of attorney, for active and reserve component Servicemembers and DoD civilians serving in a combat zone or on a contingency operation. This assistance is limited to those services normally provided to the client if s/he was physically present.
• Members of other military forces while serving in the U.S. and their dependents who accompany them.
• Prisoners who, although discharged from military service, still remain confined in a U.S. military confinement facility.
• Retired RC members are eligible to receive legal assistance only after they begin receiving retired pay at age 60.
• 100% disabled veterans only if also receiving retirement benefits.