Army Discharge Review Board

December 25, 2024

The Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) is governed by AR 15-180.

The Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) is a Board setup directly by the Secretary of the Army. It has the power to change a Veteran's narrative reason for separation, separation code, re-entry code, and characterization of service (i.e. Bad Conduct Discharge, Other than Honorable, General under honorable Conditions, and Honorable). The Army Discharge Review (ADRB) cannot make any other changes, such as pay corrections or changing a separation/medical separation to a medical retirement. Additionally, the ADRB cannot upgrade a Dishonorable Discharge (DD). For these types of changes, or anything not within the purview of the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB), a Veteran must apply to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records using a DD Form 149.

Veterans must apply to the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) within 15 years of his/her discharge. Despite what some chains of command tell their Soldiers, there is no automatic review conducted after discharge. Furthermore, a Veteran does not have to wait 6 months before applying.

Veterans can request that the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) conduct a records review, which means the Board will review whatever the Veteran submits, along with his/her official military record. Veterans can also request a personal appearance, which includes a records review along with a hearing that the Veteran attends. Since COVID, these personal appearances have been conducted via VTC (Video Teleconference). Before COVID, personal appearances were either conducted in the National Capitol Region or via one of many traveling boards (boards that would go to various cities in the Country).

A Veteran applies to the Army Discharge Review Board by filling out a DD Form 293. The Veteran should also submit additional records with their application. This could include additional factual statements, character statements, medical records, records from the VA Claim File (C-File), post-service employment records, criminal background checks, legal arguments, etc. Veterans stand a much better chance if an experienced military lawyer is retained to draft a discharge upgrade request.

The Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB), which consists of five board members, makes corrections using a "propriety and equity" standard. These terms are defined as follows:

Propriety: "is a matter that involves a determination of whether an error in discharge occurred with respect to a regulation, statute, constitutional provision, or other source of law (including a matter that requires determining if the action by military authorities was arbitrary and capricious, or an abuse of discretion), and this error prejudices the rights of the applicant. It may also involve a change in policy made expressly retroactive to the type of discharge under consideration that requires a change in the discharge. The application and relevant evidence must set forth the context of the regulatory issue or a description of the procedures allegedly violated to inform the board adequately of the basis for the applicant’s position."
Equity: "is a matter involving consideration of whether the policies and procedures under which the applicant was discharged differ in material respects from current Army standards, provided that—
(1) Current policies or procedures represent a substantial enhancement of the rights afforded a respondent relative to the discharge proceedings or other relevant proceedings; and
(2) There is substantial doubt that the applicant would have received the same discharge if the current policies and procedures were in effect at the time of the discharge."

Applications to the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) should be mailed to the Board at the address listed on the DD Form 293. Applications can be submitted online at this link; however, this service is often not working and unreliable.

Once the Board receives an application, the Veteran's Official Military Record is requested from the National Archives. The Board starts with the presumption that everything contained in the Official Military Record is correct and that the Veteran's Discharge was done properly. A Veteran should therefore request his/her record before applying to the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB). This ensures that the Veteran knows what the Board will be reviewing first and what will be presumed to be true. Because the Veteran has the burden to demonstrate impropriety or inequity, retaining an experienced Military Lawyer becomes even more important.

Often times, like when a Veteran raises mental health/medical issues that relate to the conduct that led to the Discharge, an advisory opinion will be obtained on the Veteran's application. For example, if a Veteran claims that a mental health condition significantly contributed to misconduct, an advisory opinion from a psychiatrist will likely be obtained. Advisory opinions can also be obtained from others, such as HRC, DFAS, etc.

The Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) is required to give liberal consideration to applications that relate to PTSD from deployments, military sexual trauma (MST), and/or sexual harassment. These applications are also given priority over other applications. Applications/decisions related to MST/Sexual Harassment will not be made public.

Once an application to the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) is mailed, it typically takes 12-18 months, if not longer, to get a decision back. Aside from priority applications described above, there is no way to make the Board decide any faster. The Board can be contacted at the following email requesting an update: army.arbainquiry@army.mil. However, inquiries submitted to this email are almost never answered. Unfortunately, Veterans have no recourse but to wait for a decision.

A decision from the Board will be mailed to the Veteran and/or his lawyer. If relief is granted, a new DD Form 214 will be eventually be added to his/her Official Military Record. If other corrections should be made, like those related to pay, the Board will contact the departments in question (i.e. DFAS). If relief is not granted, and only a records review was conducted, a personal appearance can be requesting using another DD Form 293. If appeals to the Army Discharge Review Board (ADRB) are exhausted, a Veteran can apply to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records using a DD Form 149. An experienced Military lawyer should be consulted in these situations to increase chances of success.

The Army Discharge Review Board publishes its' decisions, as well as statistics related to applications getting approved/denied. These decisions/statistics are available at this link. As one can see, statistically, most applications are denied. This is due to the burden of proof being on the Veteran to demonstrate an inequity or injustice. Hiring an experienced Military Lawyer to review a Veteran's Military Record, collect additional evidence, and draft a discharge upgrade request increases chances of success.

This Article was written by Attorney Matthew Barry. Attorney Barry is highly rated by former clients and has a proven track record of success.

The Law Office of Matthew Barry represents clients worldwide. He has offices on the East Coast, West Coast, and in the Central U.S.