What does this form do? DA Form 5111 is titled SUMMARY COURT-MARTIAL RIGHTS NOTIFICATION/WAIVER STATEMENT, and its job is to summary court-martial rights notification/waiver statement. Anyone sent to find "the 5111" is being sent here. Everything below expands on that one function.
Which edition is on this page? The one dated 11/01/2009, status ACTIVE. On army forms the edition date is the version, printed on the page itself so any copy can be checked.
Who is responsible for this document? TJAG maintains it, and AR 27-10 prescribes when it is used and where it goes. Completion falls to the person the entries describe or to the administrative staff holding the file. As for effort: 1 page(s), roughly 114 fields.
What the form asks for
- ContentArea1
- DATE_ONE
- DATE_TWO
- DEF_COUNSL
- DEF_SIGN
- Fifth
- First
- Fourth
- NAME_ONE
- NAME_THR
- NAME_THR_B
- NAME_TWO
- NAME_TWO_B
- Page1
- R73
- R74
- R75
- R76
- R77
- R78
- R79
- R80
- R81
- R82
Download the form
Which formats can I download? These: PDF, XFDL. All of them carry the same published page — the difference is not what the form says but how you get words onto it.
Should I take the fillable pdf or the printable one? Take the fillable version if you will type, since its entry areas respond to the keyboard and hold what you enter. Take the printable version if you will write by hand — it is the same blank form as a flat page image. The finished result looks the same either way.
What do I open a pdf with? Any current browser will display one, and any dedicated reader will do better. For fillable use the reader is the safer choice, because some browser viewers accept typing and then discard it when the tab closes. Test one field and one save before committing. What opens an xfdl file? Only the IBM Lotus Forms Viewer. The format is IBM Lotus Forms, carried by several Army systems, and no pdf reader or word processor will touch it.
Do I have to sign up? No. Every format is free, no account is involved, and the file is distributed unmodified.
Which entries come before the rest? The identifying ones at the head of the page: name, identification number, unit, date of preparation. Does it matter that they come first? Yes — everything downstream retrieves the record by those values, so they are worth getting right before you touch the substantive blocks.
How should you work through the entry fields? With the tab key. It follows the order the form was constructed in, which is usually the order the page reads, so nothing gets passed over. Do check boxes work the same way? They are clicked rather than tabbed into. In an exclusive group, a second click elsewhere clears your first choice, as intended.
What happens if your answer is too long for the field? It prints cut off. A single-line field does not wrap, so text running past the edge stays readable on screen and then disappears at the margin on paper. What do you do instead? Move it to the remarks area or onto a continuation sheet. And a field that does not apply to you? Mark it as not applicable rather than leaving it blank — an empty box tells the reviewer nothing about whether you read the question.
Is a signature really the last step? Yes, and without it you have a draft, not a form. Who else signs? Whoever the form calls for — reviewer, approver, witness — in printed block order, each dated as of the day they sign. Which errors cause the most returns? Blank mandatory fields lead, followed by identification numbers with two digits swapped, dates written day-for-month, and leftover data in a reused file that goes forward as though it were meant.
Why does the form carry a Privacy Act statement? Because personal information is being collected, and the statement declares the authority, the purpose, who else routinely sees the data, and whether answering is required or optional. Is it worth reading? Read it before you fill the fields it governs, not after. Does it change how you keep the file? It should — a filled copy is a personal record and gets the handling such records receive.
Where does the finished form go? Wherever AR 27-10 says — to the office it names, along your unit administrative channel, or into the individual's own record, depending on why it was raised. Should you keep a copy? Yes, before it leaves your hands. How long is it held? The records schedule for the series decides that, and local practice does not override it.
What if this form is not the only one you need? Search by series and number. Within the DA series, forms under the same proponent or the same prescribing directive tend to be required as a set, and anything named on the face of one normally accompanies it. Are continuations part of that? They are, along with covers and transmittals, and all of them are collected in advance rather than after a query.
When is an edition replaced? When the proponent revises the form and publishes a new edition date. What should you do with a copy kept on your own machine? Check its date against the edition in force before reusing it. Does the change reach backwards? It does not; work already completed on an earlier edition remains valid as filed.
What exactly is this site? A place to download reproductions of published Department of the Army documents. Is it part of the Department of the Army? No — it is independent, issues no forms of its own, and has no authority over any of them. Can it tell you whether your completed form will be accepted? It cannot, and nothing written here is legal advice. Who answers the real questions? TJAG or the administrative office servicing your unit, on any question of entry, requirement or eligibility.
Questions and answers
- What is DA Form 5111?
- SUMMARY COURT-MARTIAL RIGHTS NOTIFICATION/WAIVER STATEMENT
- Which edition is current?
- 11/01/2009
- Who is responsible for this form?
- TJAG
- In which formats can it be downloaded?
- PDF, XFDL, PDF
Publisher notes
- 42-ITEM ONLY PRODUCED IN ELECTRONIC MEDIA