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Full-Text Articles in Law
The Effectiveness Of Measures To Increase Appellate Court Efficiency And Decision Output, Thomas B. Marvell, Carlisle E. Moody
The Effectiveness Of Measures To Increase Appellate Court Efficiency And Decision Output, Thomas B. Marvell, Carlisle E. Moody
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This Article will examine the effectiveness of measures commonly employed to increase appellate court productivity. Part I of the Article sets forth some common design problems and explains how the research technique employed in the present study avoids these problems by using a multiple time-series research design. Part II applies this design to state court data. Part II also describes the dependent variable, the number of appeals decided per judge, used in the regression analysis. Part III discusses the results of that analysis-the impact of each change listed above on judicial productivity. The Article, although not advocating the adoption of …
Reducing Court Costs And Delay: An Overview, Leonard S. Janofsky
Reducing Court Costs And Delay: An Overview, Leonard S. Janofsky
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
The American legal system is unparalleled in its efforts to protect individual rights. A citizen's access to the legal system provides the basis for our government of laws. Yet, it must be recognized that serious problems confront the American system and persist despite a long history of efforts at reform by the organized bar, the judiciary, and other interested parties. Years of delay exist in many of the nation's busiest courts. The cost of maintaining or defending a suit has grown at an alarming rate. These infamous twin evils - delay and cost - do more than belie the standard …
An Appellate Court Dilemma And A Solution Through Subject Matter Organization, Daniel J. Meador
An Appellate Court Dilemma And A Solution Through Subject Matter Organization, Daniel J. Meador
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
The recent litigation explosion presents a two-pronged dilemma for American appellate courts. If, on the one hand, the number of appellate judges is not expanded to keep abreast of growing case loads, there is a risk that courts will rely too heavily on professional staff, thereby watering down the decision-making process. If, on the other hand, the number of judges is proportionately increased with the growth in appellate litigation, the number of three-judge decisional units will also increase, thereby threatening predictability and uniformity in the law of the jurisdiction. This Article undertakes to explain that dilemma and to offer a …
Colorado's Answer To The Local Rules Problem, William H. Erickson
Colorado's Answer To The Local Rules Problem, William H. Erickson
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This Article examines the checkered history of local rules in the state and federal courts. Part I sketches the development of local rule-making power. Part II focuses on the abuses that have resulted from a nonuniform procedural system. It concludes that the most serious consequence of that abuse - an increase in court costs and delay - has not been addressed adequately by the courts. Part III explores ways in which the local rules problem can be brought under control. Although a number of proposals are discussed, the purpose of this section is to present the approach recently undertaken by …
Court-Annexed Arbitration, A. Leo Levin
Court-Annexed Arbitration, A. Leo Levin
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
Court-annexed arbitration is utilized more extensively today than ever before. It commands widespread and increasing interest, not only because it serves the litigants well, but also because it offers to beleaguered courts a measure of relief from seriously overburdened dockets. This Article examines the use of court-annexed arbitration as an alternative method of dispute resolution. Part I describes how court-annexed arbitration works and the goals it is designed to achieve. Part II focuses on what the actual experience with court-annexed arbitration has been. Utilizing data from a recent empirical study on court-annexed arbitration by the Federal Judicial Center, this section …
Appellate Caseload: Meeting The Challenge In Rhode Island, Joseph R. Weisberger
Appellate Caseload: Meeting The Challenge In Rhode Island, Joseph R. Weisberger
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
Two of the most challenging and frustrating problems facing appellate courts in America are increasingly congested dockets and the sluggish pace of litigation. In an effort to combat these problems, the Supreme Court of Rhode Island has recently initiated several procedural techniques for screening and settling criminal and civil cases on appeal. These techniques have proven highly effective and should provide other appellate courts at least a partial answer to the burgeoning appellate caseload.
Oral Argument And Expediting Appeals: A Compatible Combination, Joy A. Chapper
Oral Argument And Expediting Appeals: A Compatible Combination, Joy A. Chapper
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
The purpose of this Article is to explore these issues in light of Sacramento's experience with the expedited appeal procedure. The data presented here are drawn from an evaluation of the first twelve months of the procedure's operation. This evaluation was based on court records of the more than one hundred cases that followed the expedited procedure to completion, in-person interviews with members of the court and court staff, and telephone interviews with participating attorneys. Part I briefly sets out the new procedure and the context in which this procedure was introduced and integrated. Part II discusses the conclusions that …
The Organized Bar: A Catalyst For Court Reform, Paul R.J. Connolly
The Organized Bar: A Catalyst For Court Reform, Paul R.J. Connolly
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This Article theorizes that state and local bar associations can play a vital role in ridding their courts of excessive costs and delay. Theory can become practice, however, only if state and local bars are reorganized to broaden their oversight and lobbying functions, in order to make them more effective vehicles of reform. This Article, then, discusses the role the organized bar can and should play in achieving procedural reform that will reduce the delay and cost of litigation. Part I describes the various stages of the reform process, using the Kentucky experiment as a model, and outlines the contributions …
A Proposed New Federal Intermediate Appellate Court, Charles R. Haworth, Daniel J. Meador
A Proposed New Federal Intermediate Appellate Court, Charles R. Haworth, Daniel J. Meador
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This article begins with an analysis of the recent history of federal appellate court reform efforts. It then focuses on three areas of federal litigation - tax law, patent law, and environmental law - in which there are exceptional needs for uniformity in the law but in which uncertainty in legal doctrine is especially pronounced. To make the law more uniform and predictable in these areas, the article proposes the new intermediate appellate court and sets forth in detail the jurisdiction arid structure of this court. The article concludes by pointing out aspects of this proposal that should make it …
The Impact Of The Uniform Probate Code On Court Structure, Ralph P. Dupont
The Impact Of The Uniform Probate Code On Court Structure, Ralph P. Dupont
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
After considering the present pattern of probate court structure in the United States, this article considers the need for probate court reform as reflected in the deficiencies of the present system. It further indicates that a realistic choice of court structure by legislatures will ultimately be made from among three options: (1) to enlarge the jurisdiction of the present probate court of the state more nearly to approximate the form currently obtaining in several states; (2) to appoint a new body of probate judges and thus create an entirely new court; and (3) to enlarge the jurisdiction of the present …