Mission Analysis

Staff Processes LEGAD / legal service officer

 Analyze higher headquarters planning activities and  Participate in the core planning cell of the joint planning group.
strategic guidance.  Identify legal support requirements.
 Review commander's initial planning guidance, including  Contact legal counterparts at higher, lower, and adjacent headquarters
his initial understanding of the operational environment, of at the earliest opportunity and establish the basis for concurrent
the problem, and description of the operational approach. planning.
 Determine known facts and develop planning assumptions.  Review all planning documents. Assist the combatant commander by
 Determine and analyze operational limitations. advising of legal issues relating to known facts, current status, and/or
 Determine specified, implied, and essential tasks. conditions.
 Develop mission statement.  Determine own specified, implied, and essential tasks.
 Conduct initial force allocation review.  Assistt the commander by identifying legal issues impacting
 Develop risk assessment. operational limitations.
 Develop mission success criteria.  Provide guidance as to legal issues that have the potential to impact
 Develop commander's critical information requirements. own military end state,objectives, and initial effects, as well as those
 Prepare staff estimates. that may impact
 Prepare and deliver mission analysis brief.  initial commander's critical information requirements.
 Publish commander's updated planning guidance, intent  Review commander’s communication synchronization guidance, when
statement, and refined operational approach. applicable, for legal issues.
 Assist in the conduct of initial force structure analysis and initial risk
assessment, highlighting any areas of legal concern.
 Assist with the development of the mission statement to ensure no
legal objections.
 Assist with initial staff estimates to ensure no legal [Link]
commander’s planning guidance andinitial intent to confirm no legal
objections/issues.
 Research applicable domestic, international,and foreign laws, policies,
treaties, and agreements.
 Summarize relevant legal considerations (authorities, restraints, and
constraints) and provide them to the joint planning group.
 Consider assigned mission, current situation, next higher commander’s
intent, United Nations Security Council resolutions, standing rules of
engagement/rules for the use of force, approved supplemental
multinational and fiscal constraints.
Course of Action Development
Staff Processes LEGAD/ legal service officer
 Review information.  Assist the commander, and staff joint task force, in evaluating each
 Determine the course of action (COA) development course of action to ensure it is acceptable (i.e., worth the risks and
technique. within legal parameters):
 Review operational objectives and tasks and develop ways  Think two levels down.
to accomplish tasks.  Consider all of the domains (air, land, maritime, and space), and the
 Synchronize (arrange in terms of time, space, and purpose) information environment, to include cyberspace and all of the joint
the actions of all the elements of the force. functions (movement and maneuver, intelligence, fires, sustainment,
 Focus on centers of gravity and decisive points. protection, and command and control).
 Identify the sequencing.  List the rules of engagement/rules for the use of force supplemental
 Identify main and supporting efforts. measures required to support each and test each to ensure it is
 Identify component-level missions/tasks. acceptable (i.e., within use of force limitations).
 Develop the information operations support items.  Consider input from counterparts at higher, lower, and adjacent
 Task organization. headquarters.
 Sustainment concept.  Reconcile any legal objections by seeking clarification or
 Deployment concept. modification of each or requesting authorizations, exceptions, or
 Define the operational area. waivers to support each course of action.
 Develop initial COA sketches and statements.
 Test the validity of each tentative COA.
 Conduct COA development brief to commander.
 Commander provides guidance on COAs.
 Continue the staff estimate process.
 Conduct vertical and horizontal parallel planning.
Course of Action Analysis (Wargaming)/Comparison/Selection
Staff Processes LEGAD/ legal service officer

 Serve to amplify the initial courses ofaction, show  Continue to refine legal considerations.
strengths and weaknesses,and further identify elements of  Wargame legal consequences of friendly actions, threat reactions, and
execution of the friendly counteractions.
 The threat’s most likely and most dangerous should be  Review legal authorities throughout wargaming.
used to wargame the friendly  Determine whether any friendly actions or counteractions require
 Wargame the actions of the joint task force two command approval by higher authority.
levels down for increased fidelity.  Comparison
 Should help to synchronize joint task force component  Evaluate in light of established criteria.
actions.  Provide additional comparison criteria.
 Course of Action Comparison  Selection
 Determine comparison criteria.  Brief the legal considerations and assist other staff sections in briefing
 Compare each friendly with enemy in accordance with the legal issues related to their planning (e.g., rules of engagement,
comparison criteria. detainees).
 Determine optimal that achieves desired operational  Determine legal support requirements.
objectives.
 Selection
 Brief recommended to the commander, joint task force.
courses of action.

Prepare Operation Order and Time-Phased Force and Deployment Data/Issue Synchronized
Operation Order
Staff Processes LEGAD/ legal service officer
 Determine who is responsible for the  Prepare the legal considerations paragraph of the “base plan”
“base plan” and the various annexes of the operation according to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Manual (CJCSM)
order. 3130.03.
 Write Develop the time-phased force and  Prepare the legal appendix according to CJCSM
deployment data. 3130.03.
 Brief/obtain approval for the final draft  Assist the in preparing the rules of engagement or rules for
 Brief to components/other the use of force appendix.
staff.  Assist the in preparing supplemental rules of engagement or rules for
 Publish/transmit final draft Obtain component supporting the use of force request and authorization messages according to the
plans. format in Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
 Conduct crosswalks and backbriefs as directed. Staff Instruction 3121.01B,
 Modify as necessary and publish/transmit.  Monitor dissemination, training, and interpretation of and of guidance
operation order. for detention operations. Review all training tools used at lower
echelons.
 Review and crosswalk the combatant commander’s, joint task force’s,
and components’ and any authorization messages to ensure they are
legally correct, complete, and consistent.
 Recommend fragmentary order(s) and changes
to the to correct any errors or omissions.
 J-3 (operations directorate of a joint staff)/J-5 (plans directorate of a
joint staff) J-3/J-5
 rules of engagement or rules for the use of force operation orders