Clause 55

a general court-martial shall be convened by the President or some officer deriving authority to convene a general court-martial from the President;

a district court-martial shall be convened by an officer authorised to convene general courts-martial, or some officer deriving authority to convene a district court-martial from an officer authorised to convene general courts-martial;

a general court-martial shall consist of not less than five officers, each of whom shall have held a commission during not less than three whole years, and of whom not less than four shall be of a rank not below that of captain;

a district court-martial shall consist of not less than three officers, each of whom shall have held a commission during not less than two whole years;

the minimum number mentioned in this section for a general or a district court-martial shall be the legal minimum for that court-martial;

a district court-martial shall not try a person subject to military law as an officer, nor award the punishment of death or of imprisonment for a term exceeding two years; but, subject as afore said, any offence under this Act committed by a person subject to military law, and triable by court-martial, may be tried and punished by either a general or district court-martial;

an officer under the rank of captain shall not be a member of a court-martial for the trial of a field officer;

sentence of death shall not be passed on any person without the concurrence of two-thirds at the least of the officers serving on the court-martial by which he is tried;

the president of a court-martial, whether general or district, shall be appointed by order of the authority convening the court, but he shall not be under the rank of field officer, unless the officer convening the court is under that rank, or unless in the opinion of the officer who convenes the court, such opinion to be expressed in the order convening the court and to be conclusive, a field officer is not, with due regard to the service, available, in either of which cases an officer not below the rank of captain may be the president of such court-martial, and he shall not be under the rank of captain, except in the case of a district court-martial, where in the opinion of the officer who convenes the court, such opinion to be expressed in the order convening the court and to be conclusive, a captain is not, having due regard to the service, available;

if it becomes necessary to convene a court-martial under this Act at any place where in the opinion of the convening officer the necessary number of army officers is not available to form such a court, or where in his opinion such a necessary number could not be made available without serious injury to the interests of the service, such opinion to be expressed in the order convening the court, and to be conclusive, then the said convening officer may, subject to any directions which may be given by the Army Board and with the consent of the proper air force authority, nominate any air force officer to preside over the court, or nominate as members of the court any necessary number of air force officers in addition to or in lieu of army officers:Provided that no air force officer shall be qualified to perform any function in relation to such court-martial unless he is of equal seniority and equivalent rank to that which would have been required by the provisions of this Act if he had been an army officer.