There are four Assistant Judge Advocates General (AJAGs), including the AJAG, Chief Judge, Department of the Navy. Each AJAG is assigned functional areas of responsibility. In the event neither the JAG nor the Deputy Judge Advocate General (DJAG) is able to perform the duties of the JAG, one of the AJAGs will perform the duties of the JAG, in the order of precedence established by the Judge Advocate General (JAG). In addition to other duties assigned, each AJAG supervises the staff within his area of responsibility. Supervisory authority includes preparing and signing fitness reports for the assigned personnel.

The AJAG, Chief Judge, Department the Navy, has primary administrative supervisory responsibility over the judiciary at both the trial and appellate levels, as the judges execute their statutory duties as authorized in the Uniform Code of Military Justice (10 U.S.C. §§ 801-946), the Manual for Courts-Martial, and the JAG Manual (JAGINST 5800.7F).

The AJAG, Chief Judge, Department the Navy, oversees the worldwide Department of the Navy “Judicial Enterprise”; is the reporting senior for the Chief Judge of the Trial Judiciary and the judges of the Navy-Marine Corps Courts of Criminal Appeals (NMCCA); is the principal strategic planner for professional development, selection, training, and deployment of the judiciary; oversees all inquiries into judicial misconduct; serves as the Navy’s judicial representative on the Code Committee; serves as the Chairman of the Judicial Screening Board; is the principal strategic planner and community sponsor for the military justice litigation career track, and is the principal advisor for courtroom design and judicial security.