# The Courts-Martial (Army) Rules 2007, Rule 43: Guilty plea


(1) If the accused pleads guilty to a charge, the judge advocate shall, if it appears necessary to him and before he accepts the plea, satisfy himself that the accused understands—
(a) the nature of the charge;
(b) the general effect of the plea; and
(c) the difference in procedure following pleas of guilty and not guilty.
(2) The judge advocate shall not accept a plea of guilty if, having regard to all the circumstances, he considers that he should not accept the plea.
(3) Where—
(a) a plea of guilty is not accepted by the judge advocate; or
(b) the accused does not plead to the charge or does not plead to it intelligibly,
the judge advocate shall record a plea of not guilty.

---
Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2007/3442/rule/43 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/courts-martial-army-rules-2007/rule-43
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.