Admiral Quinn,

You shall always have a standing salute from me.
Your integrity, your discipline, your unwavering example—these have shaped my path more than words can say.
I shall be forever grateful, my good friend.

— Sal

Michael I. Quinn is a retired Rear Admiral of the United States Navy and a distinguished former Judge Advocate General (JAG) officer whose career reflects decades of service, leadership, and legal excellence.

After attending Wake Forest University, where he earned both his Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctorate degrees, Admiral Quinn passed the North Carolina Bar and entered active duty in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps of the United States Navy in August 1985.

Over the course of a 28-year military career, Admiral Quinn served as legal counsel to senior naval leadership both ashore and at sea, including at Naval Air Station Fallon, Nevada, and aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68). He served as Academic Director of the Naval Justice School in Newport, Rhode Island, and later as Legislative Counsel for the Navy’s Office of Legislative Affairs. On September 11, 2001, he was in the Pentagon.

In 2003, Admiral Quinn assumed command of Naval Legal Service Office Southwest in San Diego—the second largest legal command in the Department of the Navy—where he was responsible for ensuring the legal readiness of service members deploying in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. He subsequently returned to the Pentagon as Executive Assistant to the Judge Advocate General of the Navy.

From October 2007 to August 2009, Admiral Quinn served as Special Counsel to the Chief of Naval Operations, the Navy’s senior Admiral and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In 2010, he was selected by a Board of Admirals to serve as Assistant Judge Advocate General of the Navy (AJAG), the third-ranking position within the JAG Corps. He retired from active duty in July 2013 as a Rear Admiral (Lower Half).

Following his retirement from active military service, Admiral Quinn was appointed by the Department of Defense General Counsel on August 12, 2013, as Legal Advisor and Chief of Staff for the Convening Authority for Military Commissions, overseeing logistical support for trial teams conducting military commissions at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Admiral Quinn’s military decorations include the Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal, Navy Achievement Award, and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon. As a civilian, he was awarded the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service. He also earned a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Environmental Law from the University of Washington School of Law.