Executive Order 13643: 2013 Amendments to the Manual for Courts-Martial, United States
President: Barack Obama
Changed military evidence, procedure and punitive provisions, including rules involving sexual offenses and records.
Status: Superseded. Is Executive Order 13643 still in effect? No. Executive Order 13643 was superseded. See Federal Register record.
What does Executive Order 13643 do?
EO 13643 amended the Manual for Courts-Martial on evidentiary privileges, discovery, records, sentencing and specified offenses. It implemented recommendations current in 2013, but the military justice system has since undergone extensive statutory reform and repeated presidential updates. Practitioners must use the current Manual and the offense-date transition rules rather than this order alone.
Before and after
Before the order
The 2012 Manual reflected earlier rules and had not incorporated the approved package of military-justice changes.
After the order
The President revised rules and offenses until later editions and congressional reforms replaced them.
Who had to do what
| Agency / office | Action | Timing / position |
|---|---|---|
| Defense Department | Publish and implement Manual amendments | Completed |
| Convening authorities and military judges | Apply rules based on offense and trial dates | Historical transition |
| Military justice practitioners | Use current Manual and statutes | Continuing |
What happened next
EO 13643 amended the Manual.
Legal and source detail
How it works legally
Article 36 of the UCMJ authorizes presidential procedural rules. Statutes control over the Manual, and ex post facto and effective-date principles govern older conduct.
Sources by type
If a source is unavailable, first check the cited publisher or another official repository. The cited publisher remains the authority.
Primary and official sources
Orders, laws, court records and official implementation material.
How we checked this
Last checked against the sources above on September 15, 2026. How we research →