a court-martial established to try violations of military law less serious than those tried by a general court-martial but more serious than those tried by a summary court-martial.
Main Entry: special court–martial Function: noun : a court-martial that consists of at least three officers, a trial judge advocate, and a defense counsel and that has authority to impose a limited sentence and hear only noncapital cases —compare GENERAL COURT-MARTIAL, SUMMARY COURT-MARTIAL
