 |
Judicial Ethics | Judicial Independence | Judicial Selection | Forensic Science | Pro Se Forum | Jury Center | High School Curriculum | AJS Store |
| Customer Service | Contact Us | Join/Give to AJS |
 |
|
||||||||
| ||||||||
|
|
||||||||
|
|
AJS Editorials Home
A closer look at mandatory arbitration for consumers Lack of real agreement, the unfairness of the repeat player effect, and the harm secret decisions are doing to our public justice system in mandatory arbitration for consumers have given traditional (i.e., business-to-business) ADR a bad name. Posted 4/28/2008 Click here to read full textSaving the Missouri Plan By removing the organized bar from the process of selecting nominating commissioners and vesting that authority in the political branches, opponents of current merit selection systems hope to gain a political advantage in the ultimate selection of judges. Posted 2/25/2008 Click here to read full textQuestions for the candidates Starting with the presidential primaries, we encourage AJS members, the media, and the candidates themselves to discuss and debate matters concerning the administration of justice that we believe should be central to our national political discourse: access to justice, federalism, judicial selection, sentencing policy, and the Department of Justice. Posted 12/12/2007 Click here to read full textRestore habeas review for Guantanamo prisoners The sorry history of confinement of foreign nationals at Guantanamo Bay for more than five years has had serious adverse consequences for our country. Posted 8/24/2007 Click here for full textPutting Justice back in the Department The Attorney General and his subordinates recklessly undermined trust in the fair administration of justice, and we cannot afford the loss. Posted 6/23/2007 Click here to read full textFixing White The federal courts should stop dismissing the states' concerns about judicial independence and start helping them interpret the First Amendment in a way that gives due deference to the interests of candidates, voters, litigants, and the public, and that does not corrupt the concept of judicial accountability. Posted 4/19/2007 Click here to read full textThe war on courts and other wars Recent attempts to hold courts, judges and judicial aspirants "accountable" and to strip courts of jurisdiction to decide certain types of cases reflect a view of judges as policy agents serving a temporary majority, and a similar attempt to insulate that majority from both the past and the future. Posted 2/28/2007 Click here to read full textSteps forward, steps back on judicial ethics The proposed revisions to the ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct go far toward ensuring public confidence in the judiciary, but some rules need to go further. Posted 12/29/2006 Click here to see full text.Politics and progress in federal judicial accountability The federal judiciary has acted on three fronts in ways that should go far to meet congressional concerns which, although legitimate, prompted some of the rhetoric and threats of unilateral legislative action that we have deplored in recent years. Posted 10/28/2006 Click here to read full textA fresh look at judicial impairment It is time to recognize that judges face the same challenges to their physical, mental, and emotional health as do other members of society, and that their unique position in society renders the provision of assistance in meeting those challenges critically important. Posted 8/30/2006 Click here to read full textThe empirical turn in legal education The turn to empirical methods in legal scholarship and teaching augurs an improvement in the way lawyers, judges, and legislators approach legal and policy questions. Posted 6/22/2006 Click here to see full text.Systemic flaws in our criminal justice system Reforms that have been implemented or suggested in recent years in the death penalty context reveal systemic flaws in the criminal justice system. Posted 4/27/2006 Click here to see full textAn Earthquake in South Dakota? A proposed amendment to the South Dakota Constitution that was inspired and promoted by a Californian and that responds to no problem in South Dakota would destroy the partnership between judicial independence and judicial accountability in the state, fundamentally alter its form of government, and leave its citizens without the protections that independent courts have provided since 1889. Posted 2/24/2006 Click here to read full textAn unprecedented budget crisis Underfunding of the federal courts may well affect the balance of power among the government's three branches. Posted 12/31/2005 Click here to see full textThe erosion of the Great Writ The Streamlined Procedures Act, now before Congress, is the latest attempt in an ongoing effort to cripple federal habeas jurisdiction. Posted 10/31/2005 Click here to see full textJudicial accountabilty Recent proposals regarding state and federal judges serve to remind us that, although judicial accountability is essential to the preservation of judicial independence, heavy-handed programs implemented under the banner of "accountability" are the enemy of the kind of independence that we should want in our judges. Posted 8/23/2005 Click here to see full text.Listening to Judge Lefkow Public officials should exercise leadership by forswearing harsh and irresponsible rhetoric when discussing judges and court decisions and by unambiguously denouncing such rhetoric from others. Posted 6/26/2005 Click here to see full textSentencing reform in the wake of Booker Both judges and members of Congress should react cautiously to the new sentencing landscape after Booker. Posted 4/20/2005 Click here to see full text.Ensuring adequate funding for the courts To gain the necessary resources to fulfill its responsibilities, the judiciary must establish credibility with other branches of government and develop a broad base of support in the community. Posted 2/23/2005 Click here to see full textThe judicial independence and accountability task force AJS' watchdog seeks to maintain the delicate balance between independence and accountability which permits our system of justice to function effectively. Posted 12/26/2004 Click here to see full text.With unseemly speed H.R. 4571 is an effort to effect back-door "tort reform" that slights separation of powers and federalism values without either a reliable demonstration of need or a thoughtful consideration of alternatives. Posted 11/12/2004 Click here to see full text.The security of our liberty Judges, legislators, administrators and citizens must be as vigilant in guarding against the urge to slight liberty as we are in our struggle to thwart terrorists. Posted 8/25/2004 Click here to see full textInterviewing judicial applicants: a critical nominating commission function Judicial nominating commission interviews provide an important opportunity to assess applicants for the bench, but the process must be fair and impartial. Posted 6/25/2004 Click here to see full text.Leave no innocent behind If we are to be faithful to our constitutional heritage, we must make every reasonable effort to correct and prevent the grave injustice of convicting the innocent Posted 2/21/2004 Click here to see full text.The need for hortatory standards of judicial conduct The ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct should not be relegated to the role of providing penal regulations. Its primary task is to remind judges of the ethical foundations of their role in a free society. Posted 12/26/2003 Click here to see full text.The media and jury deliberations: education or invasion? Educating the public about the jury is a goal worth pursuing, but there are dangers in taking the media inside the deliberation room to achieve that goal. Posted 10/25/2003 Click here to see full textComity in federal judicial selection Fixing the sorry state of federal judicial selection will require compromises that lead to institutional changes. Posted 9/1/2003 Click here to see full text.Three branches, not two: Congress should reconsider recent assaults Recently enacted legislation that will severely limit the ability of federal judges to depart downward from the sentencing guidelines in some cases is a big step in the wrong direction, exceeded in its lack of respect for the judiciary only by a House investigation of an individual federal judge's sentencing practices. Posted 6/27/2003 Click here to see full text.Safeguarding human genetic privacy Advances in genetics have raised a host of ethical, social, and legal issues that require thoughtful deliberation and legislation, not litigation. Posted 3/1/2003 Click here to see full text.The public's role in judicial discipline The diverse backgrounds of public members of judicial discipline commissions provide an indispensable "reasonable person" perspective when considering a judge's conduct. Posted 11/1/2002 Click here to see full text.Restoring confidence in the criminal justice system Through its planned national conference on preventing the conviction of innocent persons, AJS hopes to help restore public trust and confidence in the criminal justice system. Posted 9/1/2002 Click here to see full text.Judicial independence at the crossroads Organizations like AJS should broaden their horizons, sponsoring and reporting interdisciplinary research that explores the complex web of formal and informal, structural and personal, legal and political relationships and incentives that combine to determine the independence (and accountability) of a judiciary. Posted 7/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Cameras, the courts, and the public Allowing public access to court proceedings by means of television and the internet promotes public understanding of, and involvement in, the judicial process. Posted 7/1/2002 Click here to see full text.Eavesdropping on the adversary system Unwise and unwarranted monitoring of privileged conversations strikes a blow to the Bill of Rights. Posted 5/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Judges, ideology, and accountability As painful as they may be to politicians, transparency and accountability are necessary to informed public debate and responsible public policy concerning federal judicial selection. Posted 5/30/2002 Click here to see full text.The case for saving SJI The State Justice Institute is a responsible and effective organization working to improve the state courts. Posted 5/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Preserving liberty when the nation is at war Openness and idealism are the basis of America's strength; we must not purchase today's peace of mind by abandoning the liberty of our future. Posted 4/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Time for the AJS Jury Center The nation needs a jury center, and AJS is the organization to step up and make it a reality. Posted 4/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Strengthening the court-legislature relationship To promote sound public policy, judges and lawmakers must bridge their communication gap. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Courts and the self-represented—the road ahead States have stepped up efforts to assist the self-represented, but important issues still need to be addressed. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Clinton's legacy or Bork's? We may be at a crossroads in federal judicial selection, with a choice between political responsiveness and political paralysis. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Economic independence for federal judges Recently proposed federal legislation focuses attention on the importance of economic independence to judicial independence. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.What judicial candidates can say Judicial candidates can campaign in a way that allows voters to obtain relevant information but does not compromise the integrity of judicial decision making. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Jury improvement, not reform The evidence that the jury system generally works well is clear, but efforts to make it work even better are needed. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Eliminating unnecessary delays in filling federal judicial vacancies The executive branch and the Senate must act to resolve what has become a crisis in democratic government. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.The media, the courts, and the public Good reporting about our system of justice can help overcome a crisis of public trust and confidence. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.A rush to judgment Crossing the line between fair and unfair criticism of judges and their decisions. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text.Courts and the self-represented Courts should adopt programs and policies that facilitate the litigation process for those who are not represented by a lawyer. Posted 1/30/2002 Click here to see full text. |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
