Steven A. Folsom

Colonel U.S. Marine Corps (Retired)

Steve Folsom is the West Coast Operations Team Leader for Military Justice International. Colonel Folsom brings significant military justice experience and unmatched firepower to the defense of MJI clients. His vast knowledge of every aspect of the military justice process affords MJI a tactical and strategic depth that very few other law firms possess.

Steve Folsom served nearly three decades on active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps and retired at the rank of Colonel. During his active duty career he served as an Infantry Officer and later as a Judge Advocate, and he has served in practically every billet in those occupational specialties. His vast military justice experience and top-shelf legal skills were developed through service as a Commanding Officer at the platoon, company, and battalion levels, and as a prosecutor or defense attorney in hundreds of courts-martial and administrative hearings. His exceptional performance as a courts-martial attorney ultimately resulted in him being selected for appointment as a Military Judge by the Judge Advocate General of the Navy. During his first tour of duty as a Military Judge, then-LtCol Folsom presided over hundreds of bench or jury courts-martial and countless motions hearings. His judicial decisions, rulings, factual findings, and legal reasoning during this period were routinely scrutinized, affirmed, and were often cited by the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals and the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

Steve Folsom concluded his decades-long career as the Circuit Military Judge of the Western Judicial Circuit, Navy-Marine Corps Trial Judiciary. As the Circuit Military Judge he was the senior trial judge for the Department of the Navy in the Western United States. In addition to presiding over hundreds of felony and misdemeanor courts-martial during this tenure, including high-profile Iraq war crimes cases, he supervised and mentored all Navy and Marine Corps judges assigned to his judicial Circuit in offices located at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Naval Base San Diego, Twenty-Nine Palms, CA, and Bremerton, WA. During the Fall of 2008, Col Folsom deployed to Iraq where he presided over general and special courts-martial convened by Navy and Marine Corps involved in combat within the Iraq theater of operations.

After the successful conclusion of his military career, Steve Folsom entered private practice to provide experienced worldwide legal representation to service members who are in serious legal trouble.

In addition to being a pre-eminent trial attorney, Steve Folsom also serves as an adjunct faculty member of the National Judicial College at the University of Nevada, Reno, NV, and the Defense Institute of International Legal Studies, Newport, RI. In these positions he has presented lectures to audiences in the U.S., the Republic of Georgia, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Iraq, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Honduras, and Slovakia on various legal topics ranging from criminal evidence and procedure, to human rights and peacekeeping operations.

Steve Folsom has received numerous awards for his outstanding performance and leadership. In addition to receiving many letters of commendation, recognition, or appreciation, he was decorated with the following medals: Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal (x2), Navy Commendation Medal (x3), National Defense Service Medal (x2), Iraq Campaign Medal (x2), and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal. He is also a past recipient of the U.S. Navy League's Lieutenant General John A. Lejeune Award for Inspirational Leadership.

Steve Folsom is admitted to practice law before the Supreme Court of the United States; the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces; the Federal Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit; the Federal District Court for the District of Southern California; the Supreme Court of the State of California; and, the Supreme Court of the State of Georgia.

Summary of Education / Professional Qualifications:

• Juris Doctorate (With Distinction) - Emory University School of Law, Atlanta, Georgia
• Masters Degree (Military Law) (L.L.M.) - The Judge Advocate General School of the Army (TJAGSA), Charlottesville, Virginia (Resident Program)
• Masters Degree (Strategic Studies) - Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Montgomery, Alabama (Resident Program)
• Bachelor of Science (Business Management) - George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia
• Military Judge Certification (General Courts-Martial) - The Judge Advocate General of the Navy, Wash DC
• Military Judge Certification (Special Courts Courts-Martial) - The Judge Advocate General of the Navy, Wash DC
• Trial Judge Certification (General Jurisdiction Trial Skills) - The National Judicial College, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada
• Trial Judge Certification (Administrative Law) - The National Judicial College, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada
• Trial Judge Certification (Dispute Resolution) - The National Judicial College, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada
• Military Judge Course - The Judge Advocate General School of the Army (TJAGSA), Charlottesville, Virginia
• Naval Justice School (With Honors), Newport, Rhode Island
• Battalion Commander's Course - U.S. Marine Corps, Quantico, Virginia
• Amphibious Warfare School - U.S. Marine Corps, Quantico, Virginia (Non-resident)
• Infantry Officer Course - U.S. Marine Corps, Quantico, Virginia
• The Basic School (With Honors) - U.S. Marine Corps, Quantico, Virginia