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DrWebdrweb2@drwebdomain.blog
2025-11-21

UCMJ Article 92 & The Duty to Disobey Illegal Orders – 2025

Editor’s Note: This text (edited) was created by Gemini, November 20, 2025. The image is provided as CC0 1.0 public domain for use by anyone as needed.

The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) does not explicitly have a section titled “constitutional duty to disobey illegal orders,” but its provisions clearly establish that military personnel are required to obey only lawful orders. Illegal orders—those that violate the Constitution, U.S. laws, or international laws—do not require compliance and must be disobeyed.

Relevant UCMJ Articles and Provisions
Article 92 (10 U.S.C. § 892) – Failure to Obey an Order or Regulation

This article makes it a punishable offense to disobey lawful orders or regulations. It applies only to lawful orders, implying that unlawful orders are not to be obeyed. Orders are presumed lawful unless they clearly violate laws or constitutional rights.

This article also emphasizes the obedience of lawful orders, with punishment for willful disobedience. It implicitly excludes unlawful orders from what must be obeyed.

Legal experts interpret this as underscoring that orders lacking valid military purpose or that violate the Constitution are illegal and must not be followed.

Legal and Constitutional Duty to Disobey Illegal Orders

Military personnel swear an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution, placing constitutional duty above obedience to unlawful commands. They are legally and morally obligated to refuse orders that require criminal acts, torture, harming civilians, or violate treaties such as the Geneva Conventions.

The law and military legal commentary affirm that obeying illegal orders is not a defense for committing illegal acts (the “Nuremberg defense” is invalid). Service members have a responsibility to seek clarification, document, report, and refuse unlawful commands.

Illegal orders include any commands that contradict the Constitution, U.S. laws, lawful superior orders, or fall beyond the issuing official’s authority. The legality of an order can ultimately be decided by a military judge.

Summary

The UCMJ Article 92 governs obedience, but its text and interpretation make clear only lawful orders must be obeyed.

The constitutional duty to disobey illegal orders arises from the oath to defend the Constitution and the principle that illegal orders are void.

Military law supports refusal of orders that require crimes or violations of constitutional and international law, with protections for service members who do so lawfully.

This relationship is grounded in UCMJ Articles 90 and 92, intertwined with constitutional principles and military legal interpretations, providing a clear framework that service members must disobey illegal orders.

MLA Bibliography

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