When You're Facing an Administrative Separation Board: A Clear and Honest Guide for Service Members

It Doesn’t Start with a Courtroom. It Starts with a Notification

Most service members don’t see it coming. One day, you're performing your duties like always. The next, you're being told the command is recommending your separation. It might come as a letter, a counseling session, or a formal notification. The wording can be cold. The message, though, is simple. They want you out. Maybe it’s because of a failed fitness test. Maybe there was a DUI, or a pattern of behavior the command doesn’t like. Maybe there’s a medical concern, or something they’re calling misconduct. No matter the reason, the outcome could end your career. And it happens fast.

What an Administrative Separation Board Actually Is

An administrative separation board isn’t a trial, but it can feel just as serious. It’s a panel, usually three officers, brought together to review your case. Their job is to decide whether you should be allowed to continue your military service or be discharged. If you’ve served more than six years, or if the reason for separation is potentially damaging to your reputation, you have the right to have your case heard in front of this board. You also have the right to respond, to explain, and to defend yourself. That’s where it really begins—your side of the story.

Common Reasons They Try to Separate You

Commands don’t always try to remove someone because of a single big event. Sometimes it’s a buildup: a few negative counselings, a poor evaluation, a missed PT goal. Sometimes it’s a single issue they won’t let go of. Here are the most common reasons they cite:

• Misconduct, even if it didn’t result in a conviction
• Civilian criminal charges or court outcomes
• Alcohol or drug-related incidents
• Chronic lateness or disobedience
• Substandard duty performance
• Weight or body composition failures
• Mental health concerns impacting deployability

You don’t have to be found guilty of anything for the process to begin. They just need to believe you’re no longer a good fit for the service. But belief isn’t proof. You still have a voice, and you deserve to be heard.

What’s Really at Risk

This isn’t just about staying in the military. It’s about what happens next. The board makes a recommendation on how your service will be remembered. That recommendation shapes your discharge characterization:

• Honorable: You leave with your head high and your benefits intact.
• General (Under Honorable Conditions): You lose some things like GI Bill eligibility, but can still hold your own.
• Other Than Honorable (OTH): This one follows you. It affects civilian job prospects, limits VA access, and casts a shadow over your record that can be hard to erase.

What the board recommends will likely stand. That’s why showing up unprepared or thinking you can explain your way out without help is dangerous. Once the paperwork is signed, it’s hard to undo.

What the Process Looks Like

If you're eligible for a board, you’ll receive formal notification. This includes the reason they’re recommending separation, the type of discharge they’re suggesting, and your rights. You’ll have a limited window—usually ten days—to respond. You can request to appear before the board. You can bring an attorney. You can call witnesses and present documents. And yes, you can fight back.

During the board, the government side will present their case. It may feel one-sided, like the decision is already made. But it’s not. You’re allowed to tell your story, clarify the facts, provide context, and highlight your full record—not just the parts they want to focus on.

What You Can (and Should) Do Right Now

First, don’t panic. It’s hard not to, but panic leads to silence, and silence helps no one. Then do these four things:

1. Get legal representation immediately. Whether it’s a military attorney or a civilian defense lawyer, don’t walk into this alone.
2. Don’t speak to command about the case without legal advice. Anything you say can be used, and probably will.
3. Start collecting your record. Performance reports, awards, positive counseling statements—anything that shows who you really are.
4. Tell your side—clearly, calmly, truthfully. Not just what happened, but why it happened, and what you’ve done since.

The Difference the Right Advocate Can Make

Not all attorneys understand the military. Some only serve locally. Some don’t travel. And some don’t listen. Joseph L. Jordan, Attorney at Law, is different. A former Army JAG, he’s defended service members around the world, from major bases to deployed combat zones. He knows the procedures. He knows the pressure. And most importantly, he knows how to fight.

He doesn’t hand you off to assistants. He doesn’t copy-paste a defense from another case. He works with you. He travels to where you are. He helps you prepare every page, every sentence, every point you want to make. And when it’s time to speak, he stands beside you—not behind you.

Where You Are Doesn’t Matter. You’re Not Alone

Whether you’re stationed in Texas or Germany, Japan or California, Diego Garcia or Fort Liberty, legal help can still reach you. Joseph L. Jordan represents service members worldwide. You won’t be left figuring things out over email. You’ll have someone who meets the command where they are, challenges assumptions, and speaks with authority.

Don’t Let This Be the End of Your Story

You’ve served your country. You’ve shown up, done the work, made sacrifices. Now they want to take that away. Don’t let a process filled with paperwork and assumptions define the totality of your service. This is your chance to stand up for yourself. To protect your benefits, your name, and your future.

Call 888-984-7706 today and take the first step toward defending what you’ve earned. You only get one opportunity to do this right. Make it count.