Law Commons^™

Effective Assistance Of Counsel: In Quest Of A Uniform Standard Of Review, Theresa L. Springmann, John Eric Smithburn

Journal Articles

Nearly a decade ago, the United States Supreme Court in McMann v. Richardson held that the sixth amendment right to counsel was a right to effective assistance of counsel. The Court declared that criminal defense attorneys must act "within the range of competence demanded of attorneys in criminal cases, '' and that trial judges must "strive ... to maintain proper standards of performance by attorneys ... in their courts." The Court has not elaborated, however, on what conduct the right to effective counsel requires of both defense counsel and the trial judge, or the procedure by which appellate review can …