Military veterans share a lot of common traits: a desire to serve their county, an interest in travel or a family tradition of military service. Many of those same reasons impact their post-military career decisions.
Timothy Chism is a career attorney with 31 years in the U.S. Navy – active and reserve – who currently works for the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command as the chief claims attorney for the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. For him, the transition from service member to Army civilian was a no-brainer.
“I love the military life and wanted to continue being connected,” said Chism, who joined the Navy while in law school. “I had been in school for 20 years and did not want to go directly into an office. I was ready to get out into the world.”
During his military career, Chism served as an officer in the Judge Advocate General Corps in a variety of positions such as legal assistance, military defense counsel, trial counsel and staff judge advocate. With no break between law school and military service, Chism was thrown into the deep end right out of the gate – an experience he says served him well.
“I went on active duty just out of law school and was thrown directly into court,” said Chism. “Much of my legal knowledge was received while in the Navy. This background was valuable in later civilian jobs.”
Chism has been part of the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate for 11 years and is the claims officer for all incidents that occur in the northern half of Alabama. He also recently became the special assistant U.S. attorney that prosecutes in federal court misdemeanor criminal offenses that occur on Redstone Arsenal.
For Chism, his favorite part of his military service was spending six years in Hawaii and says he considers it a second home. He also said there are many reasons he would encourage others to join the military if they’re so inclined.
“It would be great if everyone could experience being part of a unit, contributing to the team effort and sharing new experiences,” said Chism. “I have great satisfaction from what I have done and what I’m doing. My present job is the best I’ve ever had.”
Social Sharing