“大调解”机制中法院的角色定位

"大调解"纠纷解决机制在基层实际运行状况如何,法院参与构建大调解机制是否存在必要性,从实然和应然的角度对法院在"大调解"中的地位进行分析,法院的角色定位为"参与者"可能比较合适,在"大调解"机制的运行中承担指导服务和保障作用。     

The Use of Domestic Violence Advocates in Juvenile Court: Lessons from the Dependency Court Intervention Program for Family Violence

The Dependency Court Intervention Program for Family Violence (DCIPFV) is a national demonstration project awarded to the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida (Miami) by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women. Developed by Judge Cindy Lederman and Susan Schechter in 1997, the DCIPFV identifies victims of domestic violence in the dependency court system. DCIPFV advocates provide a variety of services to such victims, helping them achieve safe environments for themselves and their children with the understanding that the well‐being of children can be better assured by addressing the safety and self‐efficacy of their mothers. This article discusses the DCIPFV program and makes recommendations for communities seeking to implement a similar program in their jurisdiction.     

The Right to Counsel in Juvenile Court: The Conundrum of Attorneys as an Aggravating Factor at Disposition

In re Gault provided procedural safeguards in juvenile courts, including the right to counsel. Decades later, judges continue to resist appointing lawyers. And, when they do appoint counsel, lawyers appear to be an aggravating factor when judges sentence youths. In 1995, Minnesota enacted law reforms, including mandatory appointment of counsel. As a cost‐saving strategy, the law also converted most misdemeanors into status offenses and restricted judges’ sentencing authority in order to deny juveniles a right to counsel. This study compares how juvenile courts processed 30,270 youths in 1994—the year before the changes—with how they processed 39,369 youths in 1999 after the amendments. We assess changes in appointment of counsel and their impact on sentencing practices. We report inconsistent judicial compliance with the mandate to appoint counsel and a positive decrease in the number of youths removed from home.     

Meeting the Mandates of Gault: Automatic Appointment of Counsel in Juvenile Delinquency Proceedings

In 1967, the United States Supreme Court ruled that children facing delinquency charges have a constitutional right to defense counsel. Despite that mandate, state assessments of juvenile defense systems have consistently found high rates of waiver of counsel. Children are facing harsh punishments with potentially lifelong consequences without the benefit of a trained defense attorney at their side. Given the severity of the consequences of juvenile court involvement and society’s understanding of the developmental science behind adolescence, this article argues that to meet constitutional requirements, juvenile courts must automatically appoint defense counsel for all children facing delinquency charges.     

A Coordinated Approach to Improving Outcomes for Substance‐Abusing Families in Juvenile Dependency Court

This paper describes a coordinated approach to providing enhanced services for substance‐abusing families in the juvenile dependency court. The enhanced services consisted of an interagency collaborative model including the Department of Social Services, Court Appointed Special Advocates, Public Health Nurses, and Family Support Specialists. The purpose of the intervention was to increase the likelihood of family reunification. Families were randomly assigned to either the enhanced services (N=48) or to a regular services group (N=41). Variables included social background factors, data related to court hearings and court orders, and final court outcomes regarding placement and custody. Significant factors predicting final placement of the child were completion of court ordered programs, a stable home, and mothers' cooperation and motivation. Families who received the enhanced services had significantly higher rates of reunification of children with parents.     

A Need for Training: Preparing Juvenile and Family Court Judges on Military‐Related Issues

This brief report presents a study undertaken to better understand the training needs of judicial officers related to military issues. A snowball sample of judicial officers and court‐affiliated stakeholders were asked to identify the most critical training topics regarding military issues in juvenile and family court, as well as rate the importance of 13 potential training topics. The highest rated training topics for judicial officers (N = 129) were the (1) Welfare of spouses and children, (2) Protocols to consider when selecting kinship care for children of deployed parents, (3) Mental and physical health consequences of military service and deployment, (4) Reporting standards regarding Intimate Partner Violence or Family Violence, as well as implications for civil case investigation, and (5) Education support for children of deployed parents. Findings suggest a desire in the field for specific training on a multitude of issues related to serving/veteran men and women, spouses, and dependents. Recommendations for such trainings are discussed.     

我国法院调解制度的博弈分析--再论调审分离

法院调解中双方当事人之间的讨价还价过程可以被模型化为一个不完全信息动态博弈,运用博弈理论分别考察在调审分离与调审合一两种情况下双方当事人的和解情况,可以得出调审分离更有利于提高调解的成功率的结论.此外,要提高和解的成功率,不但相关事实的查明是必要的,而且法院也不应该按同一个标准收费.     

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.     

调解的比较优势与法院调解制度的改革

调解、仲裁与诉讼，是现代各国解决民事纠纷普遍采用的方式，每一种方式都有自己的鲜明特色和比较优势，正是比较优势的存在是纠纷当事人可以选择适合于自己的方式，与判决相比，调解具有自愿性，和解性，协商性，开放性，灵活性，保密性等八个方面的比较优势，我国现行调审合一的诉讼体制妨碍了法院调解发挥其比较优势，应当改革我国法院调解制度，实行诉讼内调审分离。     

法院调解优先的冷思考

近年来,法院调解作为维护和谐社会的一项司法政策被强化,并被推至优先地位。但是,强化调解可能形成义务人无需充分履行义务的期待,导致久调不决的现象发生,降低了诉讼效率;强化调解所营造的使权利人让步的＂囚徒困境＂会折损诉讼公正,会使人们的法律虚无主义意识蔓延。与此同时,调解优先使法院在司法实践中也陷入困境,即法院调解优先与民事诉讼以审判为中心的程序构造相背离,使法官在民事诉讼程序中无所适从;而且加剧法院调解能力下降与追求高调解率之间的矛盾,并使＂强制调解＂再次成为司法垢病。为使调解回归应有状态,我们必须尊重调解和审判的特点,消除二者非此即彼的对立状态,寻求二者共同发展的契机。唯有如此,才能完善民事诉讼纠纷解决机制,发挥调解和审判的优势。