Tom Welsh

After the JAG Corps: Navigating Your Career Progression

Business EN ↓ 178 episodes

A podcast to assist judge advocates separating or retiring from the military by providing information on post-service opportunities, job search strategies, and other resources as they navigate the transition to civilian employment.

Author

Tom Welsh

Category

Business

Podcast website

podcasters.spotify.com

Latest episode

Jul 4, 2026

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Episodes

178. Cory Chipman: Good Things Come To Those Who Pray . . . and Network! 04.07.2026

In this episode, Cory Chipman takes us through his journey to the U.S. Army JAG Corps, talks about his stint in the Army, and then about his journey to civil practice, which started in all places, church.

177. Greg Saybolt: The Cornhusker Career Shift 20.06.2026

Greg Saybolt had no previous connection with Omaha, Nebraska, before accepting a position with Fiserv. In this episode, Greg takes us through his approach to his career progression and explains how he ended up as a Cornhusker.

176. Roll Tide: Allen Linken, Professor, University of Alabama 06.06.2026

In this episode, Allen Linken shares his transition from active duty to becoming a professor at the University of Alabama.

175. Jennifer Johnson: From Direct Appointment to the Navy and Back 23.05.2026

In this episode, I talk to Jennifer Johnson who joined the Navy JAG Corps after graduating law school, passing the bar, and working in the civilian sector. Jennifer then went onto to serve almost 12 years in a variety of billets in the United States and overseas before deciding to resign her active commission and return to the civilian sector in San Diego, CA.

174. John Kiel's Unusual Post-Military Career Progression 09.05.2026

A motivational episode for all judge advocates leaving military service. John Kiel's career progression is a culmination of a military career: from facing unplanned contingencies and learning and mastering new areas of the law, John's post military journey has been unusual but very rewarding.

173. Glenn Harwood Continuing His Selfless Service 25.04.2026

As a U.S. Army Soldier, Selfless Service was one of the core values instilled into Glenn Hardwood. His decision to run for the District Attorney for Midland County, Texas, demonstrates that while an individual can easily leave military service, foregoing these core values is not. In this episode, Glenn takes us through the challenges of trying to land his desired job with a U.S. Attorney while sta...

172. Jake Pugh, Founder and Chief Legal Officer, VetsForever 11.04.2026

As we leave the service, we tend to spend a lot of time trying to figure out what we want to do and what road we want to travel. Jake Pugh shows us that sometimes choosing the best can be found in the road that one has already traversed. He has successfully done that, This is his story.

171. A Life of Law and Service: Colonel Max Wood’s Journey 28.03.2026

By any account, Frank "Max" Wood has had a successful and varied legal career. From judicial clerk to active duty Air Force JAG serving in Wyoming, the Philippines, and Texas, to then serving as a prosecutor, U.S. Attorney, Georgia's Chief Administrative Law Judge, and Director of the Office of Hearings and Appeals for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, among others, and continued s...

170. Adam Torem - Lawyer, Airman, and Judge: A Career of Opportunities 14.03.2026

In this episode, we hear from Adam Torem, a retired U.S. Air Force judge advocate whose intention was to leverage his environmental law experience in the civilian sector, but ended up relying on his other skills and experiences to eventually become a career administrative law judge for the State of Washington.

169. "Truckin" With Bill Rogers 28.02.2026

This week, I talk with Bill Rogers, who has a very diverse legal career: civilian practice, Air Force, Air Force Reserve, government servant, general counsel, advisor, BnB owner/operator, back to private practice, and farmer. In light of that, the title of this podcast is a hat tip to the Grateful Dead.

168. Filling a Niche with K. Denise Rucker Krepp 14.02.2026

This week, I catch up with Denise Krepp, who has made a career of filling a niche since she left the Coast Guard in 2002, and a person always willing to take on the fights that need to be fought.

167. Coast to Coast with Rachel Reddick 31.01.2026

This week, a conversation with former Navy judge advocate Rachel Reddick whose post military career has included a brush with political office, service with Military Commissions Defense Office, a move across country, the California bar exam, a stint as an employment lawyer, and now as an attorney with an Investigations firm.

166. It Don't GTMO Better Than This: Jennifer Strazza! 17.01.2026

As a young officer, Jennifer was told that that her job with the Naval Support Group Activity at Fort Meade was not conducive to long-term success for a career in the Navy JAG Corps. Taking the hint, Jennifer started applying for jobs, but having made a good impression on a civilian attorney with whom she often collaborated, Jen landed at the National Security Activity, where she has been for over...

165. Rachel Flannery: Pivoting With Intention 03.01.2026

In this episode, Rachel Flannery, U.S. Army Reserve, takes us through her career progression from the Active Component to a career as a National Security Attorney at the Department of Homeland Security, via Georgetown and an LLM, in pursuit of her goal to "Pivot With Intention."

164. Meet the Swiss Army Knife, John Smallman 20.12.2025

This week, we hear from former Marine, steelworker, FBI agent, Navy JAG, NCIS special agent, counter-intelligence officer, volunteer, and fisherman, John Smallman. From investigating crimes to prosecuting them, John has had a dynamic and interesting career. Full of great sea stories and laughs, there is no better way to close-out the year than talking to John about his career.

163. Shelby Hladon: The Volunteer Who Cannot Say No 06.12.2025

In this episode, we hear from Shelby Hladon whose desire to spend more time with her sons has led to a post-military career as a volunteer, especially when it comes to youth and veterans.

162. Patrick Courteau's Flight From Air Force Airman to Litigation Associate 22.11.2025

In this episode, Patrick Corteau shares his journey from serving as a judge advocate in the Air Force to securing a position with Greenberg Traurig, in its Minneapolis, MN, office.

161. “Don’t Overthink It”: One Man’s Journey to a More Purposeful and Happier Life 08.11.2025

In this episode, I talk to Matthew Dursa, former Navy JAG, about his journey in overcoming a tendency to overthink things, which he shares in his new book, “Reading This Book Won’t Help You: Doing the Work Will.” A copy can be purchased on Amazon at https://a.co/d/a8AQUDN .

160. Learning from the Best: A Conversation with International Legal Scholar Michael Schmitt 25.10.2025

In this episode, Michael shares how he leveraged his active duty experience as an Air Force judge advocate to teaching in the classroom, both while still serving and after retirement.

159. Joe Androski: Seizing Opportunity in Face of Uncertainty 11.10.2025

As a probationary employee with the Navy Office of General Counsel in 2025, Joe was informed he would likely be laid off as part of the Trump Administration’s efforts to curb the size of the Federal Government. When offered deferred resignation, Joe saw it as an opportunity to join private practice to enable him to return to doing the things he enjoyed doing as a Marine Corps JAG, including Legal...

158. Holly Cook, Army Vet Continuing to Advocate with the American Bar Association 27.09.2025

In this episode, Holly Cook takes us through her career progression from the Army JAG Corps to the American Bar Association where she continues serving and advocating on issues that are in the public interest.

3. From the U.S. Army to the U.S Attorney's Office and Executive Director, Judge Advocates Association 24.09.2025

On July 3, 3021, A. Williams sat down with me (via Zoom) to talk about her decision to transfer from the active component of the U.S. Army, and the importance of networking and doing your research as you pursue a job outside of the military.  Additionally, as the Executive Director of the Judge Advocates Association, Amanda talked about the annual Jobs for JAGs workshop (which was just held this m...

157. A Conversation with my Podcaster in Arms: Jerrod Fussnecker 13.09.2025

Jerrod Fussnecker is a judge advocate in the Army Reserve and a civil litigation attorney with Collins and Lacy, and the host of the Military Veterans in Law podcast.

156. Doug Moquet, Compliance and Data Privacy Counsel, HomeServe USA 30.08.2025

In this episode, I talk to Dough Moquet who left the Air Force after 10 years to return home to Connecticut, where he was successfully leveraged his experiences as an Air Force JAG to land his current gig.

155. Back to School with Kathleen Duignan 16.08.2025

In this episode, recently retired Coast Guard Captain Kathleen Duignan talks about her decision to go back to school.

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