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Articles 1 - 30 of 78
Full-Text Articles in Law
The Superfluous Rules Of Evidence, Jeffrey Bellin
The Superfluous Rules Of Evidence, Jeffrey Bellin
Faculty Publications
There are few American legal codifications as successful as the Federal Rules of Evidence. But this success masks the project’s uncertain beginnings. The drafters of the Federal Rules worried that lawmakers would not adopt the new rules and that judges would not follow them. As a result, they included at least thirty rules of evidence that do not, in fact, alter the admissibility of evidence. Instead, these rules: (1) market the rules project, and (2) guide judges away from anticipated errors in applying the (other) nonsuperfluous rules.
Given the superfluous rules’ covert mission, it should not be surprising that the …
Professor Jeffrey Bellin: Reflections On The Fall 2020 Semester, Jeffrey Bellin
Professor Jeffrey Bellin: Reflections On The Fall 2020 Semester, Jeffrey Bellin
Law School Personal Reflections on COVID-19
No abstract provided.
Justice Begins Before Trial: How To Nudge Inaccurate Pretrial Rulings Using Behavioral Law And Economic Theory And Uniform Commercial Laws, Michael Gentithes
Justice Begins Before Trial: How To Nudge Inaccurate Pretrial Rulings Using Behavioral Law And Economic Theory And Uniform Commercial Laws, Michael Gentithes
William & Mary Law Review
Injustice in criminal cases often takes root before trial begins. Overworked criminal judges must resolve difficult pretrial evidentiary issues that determine the charges the State will take to trial and the range of sentences the defendant will face. Wrong decisions on these issues often lead to wrongful convictions. As behavioral law and economic theory suggests, judges who are cognitively busy and receive little feedback on these topics from appellate courts rely upon intuition, rather than deliberative reasoning, to resolve these questions. This leads to inconsistent rulings, which prosecutors exploit to expand the scope of evidentiary exceptions that almost always disfavor …
The Challenge Of Convincing Ethical Prosecutors That Their Profession Has A Brady Problem, Adam M. Gershowitz
The Challenge Of Convincing Ethical Prosecutors That Their Profession Has A Brady Problem, Adam M. Gershowitz
Faculty Publications
In recent decades, both the media and legal scholars have documented the widespread problem of prosecutors failing to disclose favorable evidence to the defense – so called Brady violations. Despite all of this documentation however, many ethical prosecutors reject the notion that the criminal justice system has a Brady problem. These prosecutors – ethical lawyers who themselves have not been accused of misconduct – believe that the scope of the Brady problem is exaggerated. Why do ethical prosecutors downplay the evidence that some of their colleagues have committed serious errors?
This essay, in honor of Professor Bennett Gershman, points to …
Goldilocks And The Rule 803 Hearsay Exceptions, Liesa L. Richter
Goldilocks And The Rule 803 Hearsay Exceptions, Liesa L. Richter
William & Mary Law Review
Criticism of the hearsay exceptions embodied in the Federal Rules of Evidence has reached a fever pitch in recent years. With scholars calling for the abrogation of the entire hearsay regime or of individual exceptions within it and the Advisory Committee on Evidence Rules exploring hearsay amendments, the time for genuine hearsay soul-searching may be at hand. This Article suggests that aggressive proposals to scuttle existing doctrine entirely in favor of alternative approaches to hearsay are overly broad, rejecting the benefits of significant portions of existing doctrine that are functioning well and threatening costly consequences that could make matters worse …
Deconstructing The Epistemic Challenges To Mass Atrocity Prosecutions, Nancy Amoury Combs
Deconstructing The Epistemic Challenges To Mass Atrocity Prosecutions, Nancy Amoury Combs
Faculty Publications
Mass atrocity prosecutions are credited with advancing a host of praiseworthy objectives. They are believed to impose much-needed retribution, deter future atrocities, and affirm the rule of law in previously lawless societies. However, mass atrocity prosecutions will accomplish none of these laudable ends unless they are able to find accurate facts. Convicting the appropriate individuals of the appropriate crimes is a necessary and foundational condition for the success of mass atrocity prosecutions. But it is a condition that is frequently difficult to meet, as mass atrocity prosecutions are often bedeviled by pervasive and invidious obstacles to accurate fact-finding. This Article …
Appendix: Conjunction-Problem V. Non-Conjunction-Problem Jurisdictions, David S. Schwartz, Elliott Sober
Appendix: Conjunction-Problem V. Non-Conjunction-Problem Jurisdictions, David S. Schwartz, Elliott Sober
William & Mary Law Review Online
This appendix presents the relevant data from our survey of jury instructions in support of the article in the print edition of the William & Mary Law Review. The Conjunction Problem and the Logic of Jury Findings (59 Wm. & Mary L. Rev. 619, 673-87 (2017))
The Conjunction Problem And The Logic Of Jury Findings, David S. Schwartz, Elliott Sober
The Conjunction Problem And The Logic Of Jury Findings, David S. Schwartz, Elliott Sober
William & Mary Law Review
For several decades, evidence theorists have puzzled over the following paradox, known as the “conjunction paradox” or “conjunction problem.” Probability theory appears to tell us that the probability of a conjunctive claim is the product resulting from multiplying the probabilities of its separate conjuncts. In a three element negligence case (breach of duty, causation, damages), a plaintiff who proves each element to a 0.6 probability will have proven her overall claim to a very low probability of 0.216. Either the plaintiff wins the verdict based on this low probability (if the jury focuses on elements), or the plaintiff loses despite …
Systemic Lying, Julia Simon-Kerr
Systemic Lying, Julia Simon-Kerr
William & Mary Law Review
This Article offers the foundational account of systemic lying from a definitional and theoretical perspective. Systemic lying involves the cooperation of multiple actors in the legal system who lie or violate their oaths across cases for a consistent reason that is linked to their conception of justice. It becomes a functioning mechanism within the legal system and changes the operation of the law as written. By identifying systemic lying, this Article challenges the assumption that all lying in the legal system is the same. It argues that systemic lying poses a particular threat to the legal system. This means that …
Does Removing The Force Element Matter?: An Empirical Comparison Of Rape Statistics In Massachusetts And Colorado, Peter Landsman
Does Removing The Force Element Matter?: An Empirical Comparison Of Rape Statistics In Massachusetts And Colorado, Peter Landsman
William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice
No abstract provided.
Section 6: Criminal, Institute Of Bill Of Rights Law, William & Mary Law School
Section 6: Criminal, Institute Of Bill Of Rights Law, William & Mary Law School
Supreme Court Preview
No abstract provided.
Trial By Google: Judicial Notice In The Information Age, Jeffrey Bellin, Andrew Guthrie Ferguson
Trial By Google: Judicial Notice In The Information Age, Jeffrey Bellin, Andrew Guthrie Ferguson
Faculty Publications
This Article presents a theory of judicial notice for the information age. It argues that the ease of accessing factual data on the Internet allows judges and litigants to expand the use of judicial notice in ways that raise significant concerns about admissibility, reliability, and fair process. State and federal courts are already applying the surprisingly pliant judicial notice rules to bring websites ranging from Google Maps to Wikipedia into the courtroom, and these decisions will only increase in frequency in coming years. This rapidly emerging judicial phenomenon is notable for its ad hoc and conclusory nature—attributes that have the …
Promising Protection: 911 Call Records As Foundation For Family Violence Intervention, James G. Dwyer
Promising Protection: 911 Call Records As Foundation For Family Violence Intervention, James G. Dwyer
Faculty Publications
No abstract provided.
Hear Me Now: The Admission Of Expert Testimony On Battered Women's Syndrome—An Evidentiary Approach, Matthew Fine
Hear Me Now: The Admission Of Expert Testimony On Battered Women's Syndrome—An Evidentiary Approach, Matthew Fine
William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice
No abstract provided.
Ehearsay, Jeffrey Bellin
Text Messages And The Hearsay Rule In The Aaron Hernandez Case, Jeffrey Bellin
Text Messages And The Hearsay Rule In The Aaron Hernandez Case, Jeffrey Bellin
Popular Media
No abstract provided.
The Restyled Federal Rules Of Evidence, Davison M. Douglas, Sidney A. Fitzwater, Daniel J. Capra, Robert A. Hinkle, Joseph Kimble, Joan N. Ericksen, Marilyn L. Huff, Reena A. Raggi, Geraldine Soat Brown, Edward H. Cooper, Kenneth S. Broun, Harris L. Hartz, Katharine Traylor Schaffzin, Roger C. Park, Deborah J. Merritt, Andrew D. Hurwitz, W. Jeremy Counseller, Paula Hannaford-Agor
The Restyled Federal Rules Of Evidence, Davison M. Douglas, Sidney A. Fitzwater, Daniel J. Capra, Robert A. Hinkle, Joseph Kimble, Joan N. Ericksen, Marilyn L. Huff, Reena A. Raggi, Geraldine Soat Brown, Edward H. Cooper, Kenneth S. Broun, Harris L. Hartz, Katharine Traylor Schaffzin, Roger C. Park, Deborah J. Merritt, Andrew D. Hurwitz, W. Jeremy Counseller, Paula Hannaford-Agor
William & Mary Law Review
A lightly edited transcript of the Symposium held at the William & Mary School of Law on October 28, 2011.
Finding Evidence On Facebook, Jeffrey Bellin
More On The Impeachment Of Criminal Defendants, Jeffrey Bellin
More On The Impeachment Of Criminal Defendants, Jeffrey Bellin
Popular Media
No abstract provided.
More On The Future Of Present Sense Impressions, Jeffrey Bellin
More On The Future Of Present Sense Impressions, Jeffrey Bellin
Popular Media
No abstract provided.
The Usefulness Of . . . Evidence, Jeffrey Bellin
The Evidentiary Significance Of “Tweets,” Texts And Status Updates (Starring Justin Bieber), Jeffrey Bellin
The Evidentiary Significance Of “Tweets,” Texts And Status Updates (Starring Justin Bieber), Jeffrey Bellin
Popular Media
No abstract provided.
Rule 609 And The Frustratingly Unkillable Five-Factor Mahone Framework, Jeffrey Bellin
Rule 609 And The Frustratingly Unkillable Five-Factor Mahone Framework, Jeffrey Bellin
Popular Media
No abstract provided.
Book Review Of Fact Finding Without Facts: The Uncertain Evidentiary Foundations Of International Criminal Convictions, Linda A. Malone
Book Review Of Fact Finding Without Facts: The Uncertain Evidentiary Foundations Of International Criminal Convictions, Linda A. Malone
Faculty Publications
No abstract provided.
"Fact-Finding Without Facts": A Conversation With Nancy Combs, Nancy Amoury Combs
"Fact-Finding Without Facts": A Conversation With Nancy Combs, Nancy Amoury Combs
Faculty Publications
No abstract provided.
When Facts Are Thin On The Ground, Julia Romasevych, Paul Antiss, Nancy Amoury Combs
When Facts Are Thin On The Ground, Julia Romasevych, Paul Antiss, Nancy Amoury Combs
Popular Media
Fact-finding at the international tribunals is not as precise as we think. Nancy Combs, Professor of Law at William and Mary Law School, explores this in her new book 'Fact-finding without facts: the uncertain evidentiary foundations of international criminal convictions'.
Fact-Finding Without Facts, Nancy Amoury Combs
A Disparate Impact On Female Veterans: The Unintended Consequences Of Veterans Affairs Regulations Governing The Burdens Of Proof For Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Due To Combat And Military Sexual Trauma, Jennifer C. Schingle
William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice
No abstract provided.
Searching Cell Phones Incident To Arrest: Can Courts And Legislatures Impose Limits On A Bright Line Rule?, Adam M. Gershowitz
Searching Cell Phones Incident To Arrest: Can Courts And Legislatures Impose Limits On A Bright Line Rule?, Adam M. Gershowitz
Faculty Publications
No abstract provided.
The Unrecognized Right Of Criminal Defendants To Admit Their Own Pretrial Statements, Stephen A. Saltzburg, Daniel J. Capra
The Unrecognized Right Of Criminal Defendants To Admit Their Own Pretrial Statements, Stephen A. Saltzburg, Daniel J. Capra
William & Mary Law Review
In Agard v. Portuondo, the United States Supreme Court held that a prosecutor did not violate a testifying defendant's constitutional rights by inviting the jury to infer from the defendant's presence at trial that the defendant altered his own version of events to accord with other witnesses' testimony. Justice Scalia's opinion for the Court emphasized that jurors might well draw the inference even without a prosecutor asking them to do so. Although Agard is viewed as giving an advantage in a criminal trial to the government, this Article considers how Agard might be used to allow defense counsel to introduce …