The Social Organization of Legal Services to Indigent Defendants

This article draws together materials portraying appointed counsel services in a variety of jurisdictions to illustrate the role of court organization in shaping legal services to indigent defendants. Many criminal courts are bifurcated into preliminary hearing and trial courts. Legal representation of indigents is frequently organized to parallel these stages. As a result, indigent defendants receive defense services from a succession of different lawyers at different stages of their cases. This occurs in three ways. First, some defendants legally eligible for appointed counsel at the inception of their cases have counsel appointed for them only at the trial court after initially employing their own counsel at the preliminary hearing. The dual court system encourages such one-stage representation by private lawyers by facilitating their withdrawal between stages of a case. Second, indigents may also have different private lawyers appointed to represent them at different stages because judges, interested in efficiently running their court calls, desire that particular lawyers represent indigents in their courtrooms. Finally, defender offices often assign different lawyers to different stages as a result of both the demands by judges that defenders be assigned exclusively to their courtrooms and the costs of delivering continuous legal services in a tiered judicial system. For indigent defendants the sequential system of representation may adversely affect the quality of case preparation and undermine a sound attorney-client relationship.     

Juvenile Court Context and Detention Decisions: Reconsidering the Role of Race,Ethnicity, and Community Characteristics in Juvenile Court Processes

The relationship between race/ethnicity, community dynamics, and juvenile court processes has long been established. Prior research has relied on city‐ or county‐level measures of community characteristics (e.g., racial composition, poverty) to examine how racial groups are processed within juvenile courts. To date, no study has utilized finer scale measures of geographic areas to examine how characteristics of juveniles’ communities impact court decisions. By utilizing official juvenile court data from a city in the southwest, this study draws upon attribution theory to examine how economic and crime community‐level measures directly and indirectly influence detention outcomes. Findings reveal that the effect of race and ethnicity in detention outcomes varies across communities, and the effect of ethnicity in detention decisions is mediated by economic community‐level measures. The theoretical and policy implications of the study findings are discussed.     

Cases, Conflict, and Accommodation: Patterns of legal Interaction in an American Community

This article provides an overview of an empirical study of a civil trial court and the environment of indigenous law and conflict resolution in which the court operates. The article combines an analysis of civil cases and litigants with an investigation of alternative nonjudicial approaches used by residents of the community. The first section of the article examines the emergence of legal conflicts from the fabric of social relationships in the community and compares cases and parties in the court with those that gravitate toward nonjudicial settings. The second section compares processes and outcomes available in the court with those that may be obtained nonjudicially. The article concludes that different categories of cases emerge from different kinds of social relationships and for this reason are associated with fundamentally dissimilar patterns of values, norms, procedures, and outcomes. It also emphasizes the benefits to be obtained from investigating the complex relationships and interchanges that link local level trial courts to their communities.     

FAMILY COURT COORDINATION OF HUMAN SERVICES, DESCHUTES COUNTY, OREGON

This article describes an innovative program in Deschutes County, Oregon designed to coordinate services both within the court and within the community to assist families in the family court. One of the important features of this system is the employment of a family advocate to coordinate services to families.     

Public Opinion of Teen,Classroom, and Formal Court Styles

The present research examined the views of a community sample regarding teen court, classroom court, and formal/traditional court. Participants read vignettes of teen offenders who had committed crimes of high or low severity and were given relatively severe or mild sentences through one of the three courts. Results revealed stronger support for teen court than the other courts, a general preference for harsh sentences, and a preference for match between crime and punishment. The results of this study indicate that teen courts are seen as providing an appropriate means to sentence juvenile offenders and are likely to receive public support for their continued operation.     

Role of voice in the legal process*

As communities face unrest and protest because of perceived racial bias and decreased trust and confidence in the criminal justice system, it is critical to explore mechanisms that foster institutional legitimacy. Voice is a central element in the procedural justice framework because it is anticipated to promote process control as well as a shared understanding between institutions and communities. As a concept, however, voice is undertheorized. Measures of voice used in legitimacy research may result in oversimplification of the concept, not fully capturing the struggles disadvantaged people face in trying to exercise influence in the court system. Through the use of rich data from qualitative interviews with youth and families involved in the juvenile justice system and in‐depth observations of juvenile court events, we explore what voice is, the mechanisms through which people try to assert voice, and how voice matters in the legal process. Respondents sought voice for many reasons, including to validate their experiences, to affirm their membership in a community, and to assert concerns about perceived police misconduct. Contrary to traditional conceptualizations of voice as a static event (e.g., having voice or not having voice), voice was a process of negotiating dialogue between court officials and court participants throughout the legal process.     

Plant Closings and Public Policy: Achieving an Optimal Level of Plant Closings

A severe problem confronting the Northeast portion of the United States has been the closing of plants. In making the decision to close a plant, firms tend to consider private benefits and costs. However, there are significant external costs to the community and workers which an appropriate public policy should require firms to consider. The law has dealt with the plant closing issue in several ways, including the collective bargaining process through the National Labor Relations Act, court challenges, and state and local legislation. This study examines each of these and concludes by calling for comprehensive federal legislation.     

辩论主义的嬗变与协同主义的兴起

在民事诉讼中,关于案件事实解明中法院与当事人的作用分担,存在两种对立的原则:辩论主义与职权探知主义。古典辩论主义以私法自治为根据,主张案件事实的解明应当由当事人承担责任,法院恪守不介入的原则并受此约束。随着社会以及诉讼观念的变化,诉讼不再被纯粹视为当事人私人的问题;发现案件事实、作出符合实体真实的妥当判决,被作为法院的一项责任的观念逐渐形成,从而导致协同主义理念的产生。协同主义认为,民事诉讼中对案件事实的探知,既不是当事人一方的责任,也不是法院单方面的任务,而是两者共同的责任;法院与当事人应当协同去发现案件事实,并在此基础上实现纠纷的妥当解决。     

Legal,Psychological, and Behavioral Outcomes

States have responded to the public's outrage at rising juvenile crime by revising their transfer statutes to make it easier to transfer juvenile offenders for trial and sentencing in criminal court and possible incarceration in adult prisons. These changing trends in juvenile justice raise three questions about what actually happens to juveniles once they are in the adult criminal justice system. To what extent does trial in adult court and/or incarceration in adult prisons promote or retard community protection, juvenile offenders' accountability, and the development of competencies in juvenile offenders? This article discusses state transfer laws and the legal consequences of criminal court prosecution, and analyzes current research on deterrence effects of transfer laws, conviction and sentencing in juvenile versus criminal court, recidivism rates in juvenile versus criminal court, and conditions and programming in juvenile versus adult correctional facilities. The research findings have two important implications for juvenile justice policy: the number of juvenile cases transferred to criminal court should be minimized, and imprisonment of juveniles in adult facilities should be avoided whenever possible. These implications are discussed, and directions for future research are identified.     

论法院地法在涉外非婚同居财产案件中的适用

从当今各国准据法确定的立法与司法实践看,尽可能地采取客观中立的态度限制法院地法的适用范围以实现案件判决结果的一致性是发展趋势,但基于法院地法适用的实践以及国际私法的法价值目标,适用法院地法不论在理论上还是实践中都具有重要价值。因此,对于涉外非婚同居财产纠纷的法律适用而言,由于该涉外民事关系的自身特殊性,以及解决相关冲突规范可能存在的连接点不周延和实现国际私法实体正义的需要,法院地法的适用在涉外非婚同居财产案件中具有非常重要的地位。     

Judges’ Perceptions of Screening,Assessment, Prevention,and Treatment for Substance Use, Mental Health,and HIV among Juveniles on Community Supervision: Results of a National Survey

Juvenile Justice‐Translational Research on Interventions for Adolescents in the Legal System (JJ‐TRIALS) National Survey was funded in part to describe the current status of screening, assessment, prevention and treatment for substance use, mental health, and HIV for youth on community supervision within the US juvenile justice system. Surveys were administered to community supervision agencies and their primary behavioral healthcare providers, as well as the juvenile or family court judge with the largest caseload of youth on community supervision. This article presents the findings from the judges’ survey. Survey results indicated juvenile and family court judges were open to innovations for improving the court's performance, rated their relationships with collaborators highly, and appreciated the impact of screening, assessment, prevention, and treatment on judicial practices.     

The Recognition,and Res Judicata Effect,of a United States Class Actions Judgment in England: A Rebuttal of V ivendi

United States' courts have proven willing to certify multi‐jurisdictional class actions which purport to adjudicate the claims of both American and foreign (i.e., non‐US‐domiciled) class members. This article contends, however, that a class actions judgment/settlement issued by a US court would not be recognised, and would not be given preclusive effect, in England, should absent English class members wish to re‐litigate the same grievance before an English court. Specifically, it is argued that two separate preconditions for such recognition and preclusive effect would fail, viz, a US court would usually lack the requisite ‘personal jurisdiction’ over absent English class members; and the necessary ‘identity of parties’ would be absent. The article seeks to anticipate the appropriate answer to a conundrum which is certain to arise for future English judicial consideration, whilst acknowledging the uneasy fit which currently exists between English private international law and multi‐jurisdictional class actions.     

Healing Families: An Outcome Evaluation of a Community Family Court

In this paper, a model community family court program that seeks to break the intergenerational cycle of crime and substance abuse by treating families holistically will be presented. This model court seeks to reduce crime and provide safe and permanent homes for children of substance‐abusing parents. In this community family court, the prototypical problem‐solving court has been both focused and expanded. The community family court provides a focused response designed to address the unique combination of problems facing families on a family‐by‐family basis. At the same time, supervision and treatment services have been expanded to include every family member and all open court cases including criminal charges, juvenile delinquency, dependency, and civil cases. An overview of the court's evolution and discussion of integrated services designed to provide a wraparound style intervention will be highlighted as key contributors to the largely positive results of this community family court's evaluation.     

Legal Pluralism in an American Community: Perspectives on a Civil Trial Court

This article explores the role of a local trial court in terms of the plurality of legal systems-both formal and informal-found in the community in which the court operates. The concept of legal pluralism in American society is examined, and a comparison is made between the study of plural normative systems and the study of disputes and dispute processing. Two examples of legal pluralism drawn from an empirical study of a mid western community are presented: the first exploring oral contractual agreements among farmers and the second examining formal and informal norms concerning divorce. The application of this form of analysis is found to reveal important distinctions between the manifest and latent functions that the trial court performs in its community setting.     

简论我国区际私法中的间接管辖权问题

间接管辖权,是国际私法中判决的承认与执行时最为常用的审查标准之一.间接管辖权实质是一国法院在承认与执行外国法院的判决之时.用以判断外国法院的管辖权是否适当的一种程序性规则.区际私法也涉及判决的承认与执行问题.因此考察区际私法中的间接管辖权对于区际判决的承认与执行同样意义重大,特别是在我国目前甚为复杂的区际法律冲突情形之下.考察我国现有的区际安排实践,采取多边区际安排形式来规定我国的区际间接管辖权问题较为理想.     

Right to die,euthanasia, and community sentiment

Three questions guide this research: Would nullifications occur in active euthanasia cases where the right to die is asserted? What sentiments would the community express, and how would those sentiments relate to nullifications? What variables would best predict verdict? Mock jurors offered reasons for their verdicts for four cases where all elements of first degree murder appeared to be satisfied. The cases varied thecompetency of the patient, theintent of the patient—if the wish to die was expressed, and whether a living will was present, and whether the defendant soughtcourt approval. Sizable nullifications (25% not guilty verdicts) and partial nullifications (39% guilty to lesser offenses) resulted. Some subjects viewed this as not a legal matter, but a private matter; others acknowledged the law's place, but viewed the law's position as wrong; still others nullified by using a common sense rather than a legal definition ofmalice. In this life-and-death matter, black letter law and common sense justice were not only far apart, but, in the eyes of some, irreconcilably so.     

Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan,No. 231-V of July 4, 2014 (with amendments and additions as of November 24, 2015)

This issue contains translation of Chapters 44–51 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, dealing with the judicial investigation, pleadings, and sentencing in the criminal trial, trial in cases of private prosecution, appellate proceedings, and execution of court decisions in criminal cases.     

排除危害类公益诉讼理论、制度和实践

我国环境法学界大多从环境民事责任形式角度论述排除危害。然而,由于环境危害有公益危害和私益危害之区别,制度上理应有排除危害类公益诉讼与排除侵害类私益诉讼之划分。排除危害类公益诉讼的理论基础在于良好环境权的公法保护理念与法院司法审查角色拓展和职能限制理论。决策者应以上述理论为基础,综合考量我国现实状况,将排除危害类公益诉讼制度适用范围从环境污染类危害扩展到生态破坏类危害领域,并设计正当的诉讼程序和合理的裁判方法。     

The changing face of protection for individual privacy against the press: Leveson,the Royal Charter and tort liability

This article evaluates two significant methods of protecting private information in the UK – via actions under the tort of misuse of private information, and via press regulation. As the Leveson Report has recently found, parts of the press have systematically abused their power, in terms of acquiring and publishing personal information non-consensually. Thus, as the Report found, it appears that the system of press self-regulation has been shown to be ineffective. The article considers the Leveson proposals for an improved system of press regulation and the current proposal of a Royal Charter. It suggests that, ideally, press regulation could work alongside the tort, tending to encourage press restraint, obviate the need for court action, and providing a remedy for those not willing or able, due to lack of resources, to go to court to seek a remedy for privacy invasion. The history of press self-regulation indicates that those results may not be achieved, but it will be argued that the current response to the Leveson Report in the form of a Royal Charter suggests otherwise.     

Customary Rights in Scots Law: Test Cases on Access to Land in the Nineteenth Century

Rights of access to land in Scotland for community and public use became increasingly politicised in the nineteenth century. In test cases brought by both landowners and access campaigners, they were subject to determination by the Court of Session. This article examines the doctrinal developments in the area of customary rights in nineteenth-century Scotland, and the legal and political context in which those doctrines emerged. The decisions were made against a background of reaction against the abuse of privileges by burgh governors and superiors, on the one hand, and the movement for greater public access to land on the other. It is argued that the judges of the Court of Session based their decisions, in part, on judicial values regarding the value of test case litigation and the constitutional function of the court, as well as the sanctity of private property.