Major Jo Bowen
NAME Major Jo Bowen
JOB Army lawyer
EMPLOYER Army Legal Service
AREA OF WORK The Army; law - barristers
QUALIFICATIONS LLM, University of Nottingham, 2002
How did a sensible lawyer like you end up in the Army?
It's a cliché, but I was attracted to the variety of work. Every posting lasts approximately two years and you could be doing anything: legal aid, disciplinary advice to commanding officers, employment law, prosecuting in courts martial…
After selection you trained at Sandhurst for four weeks - what was that like?
It was fantastic, though slightly surreal for someone with no military background! You find yourself on some remote plain, trying to organise a platoon attack!
What was your first posting?
It was for London District, offering general legal advice for the Horse Guards. Then I was based at RAF Uxbridge for two years as part of the newly-formed Army Prosecuting Authority, prosecuting in courts martial across the UK and in Cyprus and Norway. It was a very steep learning curve - a court martial is more like a Crown Court and there's no distinction in the Army between solicitors and barristers. I was covering both military and civil offences, ranging from absence without leave to grievous bodily harm.
And then it got serious?
In February 1999, I was given ten days' notice before being posted to Macedonia with the 101 UK Log Brigade. I gave advice on discipline, the laws of armed conflict, self-defence and so on. I really felt like an army lawyer, wearing my combats!
It must have been fascinating to be right in the middle of something so significant…
Totally. After Macedonia I went to Kosovo with the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC), just after they went in. The work and level of responsibility was fantastic - we were helping the UN rebuild the judicial system. In some areas there were no courts or processes in place, so we set up a mobile court and a legal system that they could make their own. It was hard work because it was a new operation but we achieved a lot in a short time.
A far cry from your university days!
I didn't foresee my job in the Army being like that - I thought it would be more conventional. It was just incredible - when the Kosovo Liberation Army disbanded I was involved in drafting the charter for the Kosovo Protection Corps!
And then you went back to university…
I went back because I wanted to know more about the law of armed conflict. It was a bit different to the first time round - I had a salary, a house and I was sponsored by the Army, but the work was a lot harder too!
Was it difficult to learn the military way of life?
It can be strange - all the saluting and standing up when people enter the room, calling people ‘Sir'. You can't always relax and sometimes you don't want to be so polite!
Have there been times when Army life has got you down?
The nine months in Macedonia and Kosovo were lonely - it was a long time to be away and I had to keep making new friends, which was hard work. ‘Mess' life can be hard as a single officer - meal times are regulated and you have to dress up for dinner. I guess you miss your freedom sometimes but that said there is always someone around to talk to.
