The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements.

The decoration is issued to members of the eight uniformed services of the United States[5] as well as to military and political figures of foreign governments.

[6][7] The Legion of Merit is seventh in the order of precedence of all U.S. military awards and is worn after the Defense Superior Service Medal and before the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Authority to award the Legion of Merit is reserved for general officers and flag officers in pay grade O-9 (i.e., lieutenant general, vice admiral) and above, civilian Department of Defense personnel at assistant service secretary or Assistant Secretary of Defense level and above, or equivalent secretary-level civilian personnel with the Department of Homeland Security with direct oversight of the U.S. Coast Guard.

Proposed designs prepared by Bailey, Banks, and Biddle, and the Office of the Quartermaster General were provided to the Assistant Chief of Staff for Personnel (Colonel Heard) by the QMG on January 5, 1942.

In October 1942, Brazilian Army Brigadier General Amaro Soares Bittencourt became the first person awarded the Legion of Merit (Commander) and a week later, Lieutenant, junior grade Ann A. Bernatitus, a U.S. Navy Nurse Corps officer, became the first member of the United States Armed Forces and the first woman to receive the Legion of Merit.

[13] General Dwight D. Eisenhower was presented the Legion of Merit by President Roosevelt while he was en route to the Tehran Conference, in Cairo, Egypt, on November 26, 1943.

[14][15] In 1943, at the request of the Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall, approval authority for U.S. personnel was delegated to the Department of War.

After the establishment of the Bronze Star Medal (BSM) in February 1944, the Legion of Merit was awarded almost exclusively to senior officers in the rank of lieutenant colonel (Army, Marine Corps and Air Force) or commander (Navy and Coast Guard) (O-5), and above.