After completing law school and clerking for a federal judge, West entered the United States Army and served in the Judge Advocate General's Corps. From his military service, he earned the Legion of Merit and the Meritorious Service Medal. He subsequently practiced law at the firm of Covington & Burling before being appointed an associate deputy attorney general in the administration of President Gerald Ford. Then, West held several posts in the administration of Jimmy Carter: general counsel to the Navy (1977-1979), special assistant to the secretary and to the deputy secretary of defense (1979), and general counsel to the Department of Defense (1980-1981). As the Secretary of the Army, West commented on the Aberdeen scandal, which prompted stricter enforcement and investigation into the Army's sexual harassment policies.