This innovative book proposes new theories on how the legal system can be made more comprehensible, usable and empowering for people through the use of design principles. Utilising key case studies and providing real-world examples of legal innovation, the book moves beyond discussion to action. It offers a rich set of examples, demonstrating how various design methods, including information, service, product and policy design, can be leveraged within research and practice.
Around the world, access to justice enjoys an energetic and passionate resurgence as an object both of scholarly inquiry and political contest, as both a social movement and a value commitment motivating study and action. This work evidences a deeper engagement with social theory than past generations of scholarship.
For people dealing with a personal injury claim, a landlord-tenant dispute, a small business scrape or any of the dozens of other possible legal muddles, this book points the way through the complex court system. The book also ncludes a chapter dealing with the specifics of handling a divorce, child custody or child support action.Written in plain English, Represent Yourself in Court breaks down the trial process into easy-to-understand steps so that you can act as your own lawyer -- safely and efficiently. Veteran attorneys Bergman and Berman-Barrett tell you what to say, how to say it, even where to stand when you address the judge and jury.Armed with the simple but thorough instructions in Represent Yourself in Court, you can be heard and taken seriously in any courtroom. Readers learn how to: „X file court papers „X handle depositions and interrogatories „X comply with courtroom procedures „X pick a jury „X prepare your evidence and line up witnesses „X present your opening statement and closing argument „X cross-examine hostile witnesses „X understand and apply rules of evidence „X locate, hire and effectively use expert witnesses „X make and respond to your opponent's objections „X get limited help from an attorney on an as-needed basis „X monitor the work of an attorney if you decide to hire one Whether you are a plaintiff or a defendant, this book will help you confidently handle a divorce, personal injury case, landlord/tenant dispute, breach of contract, small business dispute or any other civil lawsuit.
America is a nation founded on justice and the rule of law. But our laws are too complex, and legal advice too expensive, for poor and even middle-class Americans to get help and vindicate their rights. Criminal defendants facing jail time may receive an appointed lawyer who is juggling hundreds of cases and immediately urges them to plead guilty. Civil litigants are even worse off; usually, they get no help at all navigating the maze of technical procedures and rules. The same is true of those seeking legal advice, like planning a will or negotiating an employment contract. Rebooting Justice presents a novel response to longstanding problems. The answer is to use technology and procedural innovation to simplify and change the process itself. In the civil and criminal courts where ordinary Americans appear the most, we should streamline complex procedures and assume that parties will not have a lawyer, rather than the other way around. We need a cheaper, simpler, faster justice system to control costs. We cannot untie the Gordian knot by adding more strands of rope; we need to cut it, to simplify it.
By any measure, the law as a profession is in serious trouble. Americans' trust in lawyers is at a low, and many members of the profession wish they had chosen a different path. Law schools, with their endlessly rising tuitions, are churning out too many graduates for the jobs available. Yet despite the glut of lawyers, the United States ranks 67th (tied with Uganda) of 97 countries in access to justice and affordability of legal services. The upper echelons of the legal establishment remain heavily white and male. Most problematic of all, the professional organizations that could help remedy these concerns instead jealously protect their prerogatives, stifling necessary innovation and failing to hold practitioners accountable. Deborah Rhode's The Trouble with Lawyers is a comprehensive account of the challenges facing the American bar. She examines how the problems have affected (and originated within) law schools, firms, and governance institutions like bar associations; the impact on the justice system and access to lawyers for the poor; and the profession's underlying difficulties with diversity. She uncovers the structural problems, from the tyranny of law school rankings and billable hours to the lack of accountability and innovation built into legal governance-all of which do a disservice to lawyers, their clients, and the public. The Trouble with Lawyers is a clear call to fix a profession that has gone badly off the rails, and a source of innovative responses.
Over the past thirty years, there has been a dramatic shift in the way the legal system approaches and resolves family disputes. Traditionally, family law dispute resolution was based on an “adversary” system: two parties and their advocates stood before a judge who determined which party was at fault in a divorce and who would be awarded the rights in a custody dispute. Now, many family courts are opting for a “problem-solving” model in which courts attempt to resolve both legal and non-legal issues. At the same time, American families have changed dramatically. Divorce rates have leveled off and begun to drop, while the number of children born and raised outside of marriage has increased sharply. Fathers are more likely to seek an active role in their children’s lives. While this enhanced paternal involvement benefits children, it also increases the likelihood of disputes between parents. As a result, the families who seek legal dispute resolution have become more diverse and their legal situations more complex. In Divorced from Reality, Jane C. Murphy and Jana B. Singer argue that the current "problem solving" model fails to address the realities of today's families. The authors suggest that while today’s dispute resolution regime may represent an improvement over its more adversary predecessor, it is built largely around the model of a divorcing nuclear family with lawyers representing all parties—a model that fits poorly with the realities of today's disputing families. To serve the families it is meant to help, the legal system must adapt and reshape itself.
TheArt and Practice of Court Administration explores the context in which court administration is practiced and identifiesthe qualities and skills court administrators need. Divided into two major parts, part one covers the history of the field and how courts are organized, environmental conditions in which court administration is practiced, special impact on courts of the elected clerk of court, prosecutor, and the sheriff, the judge’s administrative roles, as well as how a judge’s judicial and administrative roles work with management. The second part reviews a new approach for setting and adjusting priorities among the multiple functions courts perform—the Hierarchy of Court Administration. It defines priorities, analyzes court roles that establish mission critical functions, and sets an agenda for advancing courts throughout this century. Thorough and complete, The Art and Practice of Court Administration details how courts operate, the court administrator’s position and responsibilities, and approachestoissues and problems.
"Symposium: The Gideon Effect: Rights, Justice, and Lawyers Fifty Years After Gideon v. Wainwright." The year 2013 marks the golden anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Gideon v. Wainwright (1963), which established a constitutional right to counsel for criminal defendants. A half century later, there remains a compelling need for a reexamination of its legacy, extensions, shortfalls, and long shadow over other areas of law such as immigration and custody disputes. This special Symposium issue of the Yale Law Journal is, in effect, a new and extensive book on this important subject, featuring contributions by internationally recognized legal and political scholars. It is one of the most thorough, detailed, and wide-ranging analyses of the current standing and reach of what may be the Court's most important criminal law decision. The contributors are: Rebecca Aviel, John H. Blume & Sheri Lynn Johnson, Stephen B. Bright & Sia M. Sanneh, Paul D. Butler, Jeanne Charn, Erwin Chemerinsky, Gabriel J. Chin, Martha F. Davis, Ingrid V. Eagly, Roger A. Fairfax Jr., Bruce A. Green, M. Clara Garcia Hernandez & Carole J. Powell, Emily Hughes, Kevin R. Johnson, Neal Kumar Katyal, Nancy J. King, Nancy Leong, Justin F. Marceau, Hope Metcalf & Judith Resnik, Pamela R. Metzger, David E. Patton, Eve Brensike Primus, L. Song Richardson & Phillip Atiba Goff, Jenny Roberts, and Carol S. Steiker. The issue, the eighth and final one of academic year 2012-2013, also includes a cumulative Index to the eight issues of Volume 122. As with previous digital editions of the Yale Law Journal available from Quid Pro Books, features include active Tables of Contents (including links in each Essay's own table), linked footnotes and URLs, and proper ebook formatting.
