More commonly referred to as a unit crest, the Distinctive Unit Insignia (DUI) of the 410th Civil Affairs Battalion was approved on 16 September 2011. It consists of a shield portion divided into a chief (upper third) and a lower section divided into thirds by a pale (vertical column) and a scroll attached to the shield. On the scroll is the inscription ORDO AB CHAO, a Latin phrase that serves as the unit motto which translates into English as “Out Of Chaos Comes Order.”
The pale in the center is a symbol of fortitude. Inside the pale, a point-down sword is an emblem of peaceful resolution based on the unit’s responsibility to administer justice in the face of confusion and chaos. On the sword is an attached scroll with the nib of a quill pen writing upon it; the scroll and quill denote the mission of civil authority. Black and gold, the alternating colors of the lower shield, suggest chaos and order, respectively.
A mountain in the chief is an allusion to the Franklin Mountains around El Paso, Texas, with the single star recalling Texas as the “Lone Star State.”
An Army Reserve unit based in El Paso, the 410th Civil Affairs Battalion is assigned to the 321st Civil Affairs Brigade, headquartered in San Antonio and under the control the 350th Civil Affairs Command at Pensacola, Florida.
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Distinctive Unit Insignias are worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
For Enlisted personnel, the insignia is centered on a shoulder loop by placing it an equal distance from the outside shoulder seam to the outside edge of the shoulder-loop button. Officers (except Generals) wearing grade insignia on the shoulder loops center the DUI by placing it an equal distance between the inside edge of the grade insignia and the outside edge of the button.
Full guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1,
Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia."