 On 29 March 1918, during a difficult phase of the war, the Senate decided to review a proposed change to the code of military justice of 3 October 1916.As rapporteur, Flandin stated that this was not the time to reopen the question, and that the need for discipline must be addressed as well as the demand for justice that had been formulated by the Chamber a few months earlier.The senators followed Flandin in agreeing on the principle of a secret ballot and the freedom of the accused to communication with his defense council, but refused to increase the number of judges on the tribunals from five to seven.