Exam 5: The Dynamics of Courthouse Justice

The American Bar Association recommends that all felony cases reach disposition within

What happens with most complaints about attorney misconduct?

Lawyers often suffer from a negative public image, which is one reason the legal profession places considerable emphasis on legal ethics. Ethics refers to the study and analysis of what constitutes good or bad conduct (Pollock 2012). Legal ethics represents a specific type of ethics. -Legal ethics is of critical importance because

The Speedy Trial Act of 1974 (amended in 1979) allows how many days from arrest to indictment in federal courts?

The clerk of court is responsible for overseeing jury selection.

Most state speedy trial laws are designed to protect

Judges, lawyers, clerks, court stenographers, law clerks, and bailiffs work inside the courtroom.

Delay is a problem because it wastes court resources.

The regular participants in the day-to-day activities of a courtroom include the judge, prosecutor, and defense attorney. There actors in the courtroom often make decisions without reference to specific rules or facts. The decision made by these actors allow the courtroom process to flow smoothly enable the speedy processing of defendants -What is the name of the concept that describes the network of ongoing relationships among courthouse actors?

Most cases end in a plea of guilty.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of speedy-trial laws? Provide examples.

The _____ is the officer who presides in a court of law.

Clerks of court and court _____ work behind the scenes.

Law in _____ approaches to solving the problem of delay can prove effective because they focus on coordinating the activities of the key actors in the courthouse.

Maverick defense attorneys

Which of the following is not a major subcomponent of discretion?

What are important because they provide necessary boundaries on conflict represented by the adversary system?

Sixteen times Willie Barker’s murder case was set for trial, and sixteen times it was continued. At first the defense readily agreed, gambling that Barker’s codefendant would be found not guilty. Thus, some of the continuances were caused by the six separate trials before the codefendant was finally convicted. Other continuances were granted because of the illness of the police investigator. It was not until five years after arrest that Barker was convicted of murder. -What right did Barker's lawyer argue was violated?

_____ refers to the study and analysis of what constitutes good or bad conduct.

The clerk of court is responsible for maintaining order in the courtroom.