Each year, the Military Law Section of the State Bar of Texas recognizes two outstanding military judge advocates at its Annual Meeting, held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of the State Bar of Texas.  This year, the awards went to two very deserving military lawyers: 

•  The Krauska Award Selection Committee is pleased to announce that Captain Ryan Hilton, USAF, was selected as the Krauska Award winner for 2009.  This award is given annually to the most Outstanding Young Active Duty Military Lawyer in Texas. Captain Hilton is the Assistant Staff Judge Advocate, 47th Flying Training Wing, Laughlin Air Force Base.  In that position, Captain Hilton was the Acting Chief of Military Justice, meeting or exceeding Air Force time standards; advised on high dollar construction contracts; advised the base commander on numerous civilian labor force disciplinary actions; and was counsel on various war game exercises.  In addition to his heavy workload, he still found time for volunteer work, including spearheading animal shelter and rescue efforts and founding a dog swap program for those deploying or PCS'ing overseas who could not take their pets with them. 
  

• The winner of "The Colonel Ted E. Bailey, Jr. Award for the Outstanding Reserve Component Judge Advocate in Texas for 2009" is Major Sonya Batchelor, Texas Air National Guard. She is currently assigned as the Deputy Staff Judge Advocate, 149th Fighter Wing, TXANG. She was assigned to the 149 FW in January 2007 after serving more than four years as an active duty Air Force Judge Advocate. Among her last active duty assignments, she served as a Senior Disability Law Attorney at the USAF Office of Disability Counsel working on a wide range of complex Wounded Warrior issues. She served as the Chief Counsel of the Physical Evaluation "Night Board" Program to reduce a severe case back load. Most recently with the Air Guard, she has become the Wounded Warrior expert and the "go to" resource for RC JAGs. In the aftermath of Hurricane Ike in October 2008, she served as the Task Force J1 while deployed to Galveston with a team of the 149 FW. Additionally, she has served as Defense Counsel for TXANG members from across the State of Texas. In her civilian capacity, she serves the State of Texas as an Administrative Law Judge for the Public Utilities Commission. Major Batchelor lives in Travis County and is active in civic programs in Lakeway, Texas.

After being nominated for their respective awards, Major Batchelor and Captain Hilton were selected from a pool of excellent nominees.  In addition to recognizing their contributions, the Selection Committees appreciate the accomplishments of all nominees, as well as the efforts of the nominating officials who took the time to recognize their truly outstanding personnel.

The Military Law Section has created these annual awards to recognize the many accomplishments of our military lawyers, and to honor two of the Section's early leaders.  Here is a bit of background concerning the awards, the objectives behind them, and the lawyers they are intended to honor:

1.     Colonel Tom Krauska Award:  From the active-component forces, the Military Law Section presents "The Colonel Tom Krauska Award for Outstanding Service As An Active Duty Military Lawyer Stationed in Texas."  The nominee may be a licensed attorney from any state, as long as he or she is stationed in Texas.  Lawyers stationed in Texas, but temporarily deployed outside the state, are eligible. 

2.    Colonel Ted E. Bailey, Jr. Award:  From the reserve-component forces (i.e., reserve units and the National Guard), the Military Law Section presents the "The Colonel Ted E. Bailey, Jr. Award for Outstanding Service as a Military Lawyer in Texas" to an outstanding reserve-component judge advocate who is a member of the Texas Bar.  Eligible candidates may be assigned to a reserve component unit at any location.  

Who are Col Krauska and Col Bailey?

Colonel Tom Krauska (USAF Ret.) (1919-2006) and Colonel Ted E. Bailey, Jr. (USAR Ret.) are two of the early leaders of the Military Law Section.   The Section was formed in 1958 to serve the active, reserve, and retired military judge advocates of the Bar and to focus on meeting the needs of military members in Texas. It is very appropriate that these two awards, presented annually by the Military Law Section, are named after these outstanding leaders in the military and legal communities.

What do these awards recognize?

Both awards recognize judge advocates' outstanding achievement and service to the civilian, military, and professional communities. The selected officers receive a beautiful plaque in recognition of their respective achievements.

Award Criteria

THE COLONEL TOM KRAUSKA AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING SERVICE AS A MILITARY LAWYER IN TEXAS:

• Active component Judge Advocate
• Grade O-2 to O-4
• Stationed in Texas, even if temporarily deployed outside the state
• Based on service to the military, military community, and/or civilian community
  

THE COLONEL TED E. BAILEY, JR. AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING SERVICE AS A MILITARY LAWYER IN TEXAS:

• Texas Judge Advocate
• Grade O-2 to O-4
• Member of State Bar of Texas
• Assigned to any reserve component unit of any branch of the service or member of the National Guard (if IRR, must have performed at least 14 days drill or active duty during the preceding calendar year)

COMMON NOMINATION CRITERIA:

• No specific format is required.
  
• No minimum or maximum length.
  
• The nomination should befit the officer nominated for this award. 
  
• The nominee/recipient must be serving in a Judge Advocate billet/assignment.
  
• The award selection committees will consider military performance, military duties, professional publications, awards and activities, and community/professional service.
  
• Nominations should be made by the supervisor or Staff Judge Advocate, and should describe in detail why the individual is an outstanding military attorney.
  
• Please include specific examples of outstanding performance of military duties.
  
• The nomination may include professional publications, awards, activities, community service, and service to the State Bar.
  
• If the nominating official previously nominated an officer who was not selected, the selection committees still have your earlier nomination on file. Simply send a letter nominating the officer again and give an update on his/her duties/performance since the earlier nomination.