Courts Commons^™

Constitutional Law -- Due Process Clause -- Third Circuit Holds That $50 Million Punitive Damages Award In Context Of A $48 Million Compensatory Award Is Unconstitutionally Excessive -- Inter Medical Supplies, Ltd. V. Ebi Medical Systems, Inc., 181 F.3d 446 (3d Cir. 1999)., A. Benjamin Spencer

Faculty Publications

In 1996, the Supreme Court, in BMW of North America, Inc. v. Gore, struck down a punitive damages award on the ground that it was "grossly excessive" in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment . Since BMW, many courts have faced the challenge of applying its principles to determine whether punitive damages awards surpass the constitutional limit. Last June, in Inter Medical Supplies, Ltd. v. EBI Medical Systems, Inc., the Third Circuit faced this difficulty when it considered whether a $50 million punitive damages award, granted in conjunction with a $48 million compensatory damages award, was …

The Democracy-Forcing Constitution, Neal Devins

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Road To The Virtual Courtroom? A Consideration Of Today’S -- And Tomorrow’S -- High Technology Courtrooms, Fredric I. Lederer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

No-Drop Prosecution Of Domestic Violence: Just Good Policy, Or Equal Protection Mandate?, Kalyani Robbins

Faculty Publications

Domestic violence is a problem that must be dealt with for what it is: a criminal act. The only way to effectively diminish it is through the full force of the criminal justice system, which must treat domestic violence the same as it treats crime by strangers. The purpose of this note is to argue that aggressive prosecution of domestic violence-at least to the same extent that other violent crimes are prosecuted-is mandated by the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Part I will examine the extent of the problems that pervade the criminal justice system, both historically and …

Two Cheers For The Commission On Structural Alternatives For The Federal Courts Of Appeals, Thomas E. Baker

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

How Much Justice Hangs In The Balance? A New Look At Hung Jury Rates, Paula Hannaford-Agor, Valerie P. Hans, G. Thomas Munsterman

Faculty Publications

This article discusses what is currently known about hung juries based on exist­ing empirical research and examines some preliminary data about the contempo­rary incidence of hung juries in the federal courts and several state courts. The paucity of information on hung jury rates highlights the need for a rigor­ous and system-wide examination that extends beyond the scope of the jury itself and encompasses the insti­tutional characteristics of each juris­diction and how those characteristics affect the types of cases that are pre­sented to juries.

This abstract has been taken from the authors' introduction.

Creating The 'Portable' Guardianship: Legal And Practical Implications Of Probate Court Cooperation In Interstate Guardianship Cases, Charlene D. Daniel, Paula Hannaford-Agor

Faculty Publications

In this article, we discuss the legal and practical issues associ­ated with interstate guardianships--that is, those guardianships in which the ward has ties to more than one state. Part I addresses these issues in the context of jurisdictional questions, securing nec­essary information, judicial monitoring and enforcement of guardi­anship orders, and property management. Part II proposes some modest solutions to these problems, many borrowed from other ar­eas of law (e.g., child support enforcement, child custody determinations, enforcement of civil protection orders, involuntary civil commitment).

This abstract has been taken from the authors' introduction.

The Arizona Jury Reform Permitting Civil Jury Trial Discussions: The Views Of Trial Participants, Judges, And Jurors, Valerie P. Hans, Paula Hannaford-Agor, G. Thomas Munsterman

Faculty Publications

In 1995, the Arizona Supreme Court reformed the jury trial process by allowing civil jurors to discuss the evidence presented during trial prior to their formal deliberations. This Article examines and evaluates the theoretical, legal, and policy issues raised by this reform and presents the early results of a field experiment that tested the impact of trial discussions. Jurors, judges, attorneys, and litigants in civil jury trials in Arizona were questioned regarding their observations, experi­ences, and reactions during trial as well as what they perceived to be the benefits and drawbacks of juror discussions. The data revealed that the majority …

Some Thoughts On The Evidentiary Aspects Of Technologically Produced Or Presented Evidence, Fredric I. Lederer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Of Communists And Anti-Abortion Protestors: The Consequences Of Falling Into The Theoretical Abyss, Christina E. Wells

Faculty Publications

Part I of this article briefly reviews the legal and social context of Dennis and Yates. Parts II and III similarly review Madsen and Schenck in order to show potential parallels to the earlier communist decisions. Part IV further examines both Madsen and Schenck, demonstrating that, from a doctrinal standpoint, they are far removed from the earlier communist cases. Finally, Part V explains how the Court in Madsen and Schenck actually contributed to misconceptions or manipulation of its opinions. Specifically, Part V examines the Madsen and Schenck Courts' approaches to three of the more difficult doctrinal issues facing them--prior restraint, …

Court Interpreting Services In State And Federal Courts: Reasons And Options For Inter-Court Coordination, William E. Hewitt, Paula Hannaford-Agor, Catherine Gill, Melissa Cantrell

Faculty Publications

In 1978 a federal law marked the beginning of standard setting and professionalization of court interpreters through testing. In 1995, an entity now called the Consortium for State Court Interpreter Certification was created by the National Center for State Courts and four founding states (Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, and Washington.) The Consortium was created as a way to ameliorate shortages of resources and expertise to implement standards for interpreting proficiency at the state level, problems shared by virtually all of the states. Now, as a consequence of institutionalization, a forum has been created wherein exchange of information and expertise, and …

The Sign Of The Four": Judicial Assignment And The Rule Of Law, Jonathan L. Entin

Faculty Publications

This article will examine the issues of judicial assignment. Then the article will return to the Cameron situation in an effort to put that controversy into broader perspective. Finally, the article will consider state procedures that, for practical purposes, authorize litigants to make peremptory challenges to judges in certain circumstances. Those procedures have implications for the discussion of random assignments and for the way we think about Judge Cameron's charges.

State Of Ohio V. Richard D. Chilton And State Of Ohio V. John W. Terry: The Suppression Hearing And Trial Transcripts, John Q. Barrett

Faculty Publications

This appendix to Deciding the Stop and Frisk Cases: A Look Inside the Supreme Court’s Conference, 72 St. John’s L. Rev. 749 (1998), includes Biographical Information on the Participants in the Case; and transcripts of the complete pretrial and trial proceedings in the 1964 criminal prosecutions of Richard Chilton and John Terry, arranged by Prof. Barrett to create the organization reflected in the Table of Contents at the beginning of the appendix. Footnotes were added to provide citations and, in a few instances, to clarify the text. Bracketed material was added to correct obvious slips of the tongue or the …

Judicial Exclusivity And Political Instability, Neal Devins, Louis Fisher

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

How Judges View Civil Juries, Paula Hannaford-Agor, B. Michael Dann, G. Thomas Munsterman

Faculty Publications

In any given case, the judge's view of the jury may mani­fest itself as a complex and subtle mixture of respect, gratitude, con­cern, pride, impatience, and even frustration. But more revealing than what judges say about juries is what judges do to prepare jurors for their roles in civil cases. This paper explores the various indicators of judges' views of the civil jury, including the social and institutional factors and contemporary jury reform efforts that affect judges' views about the civil jury.

This abstract has been taken from the authors' introduction.

Reshaping The Bedrock Of Democracy: American Jury Reform During The Past 30 Years, G. Thomas Munsterman, Paula Hannaford-Agor

Faculty Publications

In this article, we explore three broad areas of jury reform--administrative, structural, and procedural--as well as the problems they were intended to address and the consequences, both good and bad, that resulted from their implementation.

This abstract has been taken from the author's introduction.

Completing The Admissibility Equation, Richard C. Reuben

Faculty Publications

Later this year, the U.S. Supreme Court will take up an evidence dispute from Georgia that promises to be one of the new term's most important nuts-and-bolts cases for litigators. General Electric Co. v. Joiner, no. 96-188, is expected to determine the standard of review that federal appellate courts must give to lower court decisions on the admissibility of scientific evidence. The Court's decision in Joiner promises to have an important effect on a broad range of cases in which causation often is a pivotal issue.

Moment Of Truth, Richard C. Reuben

Faculty Publications

While the technical sophistication of today's polygraphs is far beyond the cathode-tube stuff of the 1920s, many lawyers and judges continue to view them as inherently unreliable and overly prejudicial. Their concern is that the procedure does not test whether a subject is telling the truth but measures physiological responses to questions- which may reveal much, but not necessarily the truth. But this fall, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider, in United States v. Scheffer, No. 96-1133, whether to finally lift the barrier to admissibility of polygraph evidence, at least in the federal courts, on grounds that it inhibits the …

Places In The Heartland: Departure Jurisprudence After Koon, Frank O. Bowman Iii

Faculty Publications

There are two things upon which I suspect most observers will agree following the decision in Koon v. United States. First, the United States Supreme Court wants district courts to have more discretion to depart from the otherwise applicable guideline range, and wants appellate courts to have less authority to overturn those discretionary judgments. Second, in light of the conflicting signals the Court gave by, on the one hand, declaring that the standard of appellate review for departure decisions is to be abuse of discretion,” and on the other hand, finding that two of the five factors relied upon by …

When Physicians Balk At Futile Care: Implications Of The Disability Rights Laws, Philip G. Peters Jr.

Faculty Publications

Part I of this article reviews the factual background of the futility debate. Part II introduces the antidiscrimination laws. Thereafter, Parts III, IV, and V examine the three components of the proposal suggested above.

The Prosecutor V. Dusko Tadic: An Appraisal Of The First International War Crimes Trial Since Nüremberg, Michael P. Scharf

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Have We Really Learned The Lessons Of Nüremberg?, Michael P. Scharf

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Justices Take The 11th, Richard C. Reuben

Faculty Publications

Until not long ago, the 11th Amendment with its barrier to some citizen suits in federal courts was a largely ignored provision of the U.S. Constitution. Those days may be coming to an end, however, as the Supreme Court has resurrected the dusty old amendment in its steady, if not always consistent, march toward a new federalism or what some scholars are calling the "antifederalist revival."

Municipal Courts--Another Urban Ill, Lewis R. Katz

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

2020 Year-End Report On The Judiciary By The Chief Justice Of The United States, Thomas E. Baker

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Whoever Fights Monsters Should See To It That In The Process He Does Not Become A Monster: Hunting The Sexual Predator With Silver Bullets -- Federal Rules Of Evidence 413-415 -- And A Stake Through The Heart -- Kansas V. Hendricks, Joelle A. Moreno

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Judicial Review Of Customs Service Actions, Peter M. Gerhart

Faculty Publications

This article is based on a report prepared for the Administrative Conference of the United States in connection with its study of judicial review of actions taken by the U.S. Customs Service. The recommendations herein were adopted in substantially identical form by the Administrative Conference at its September 19, 1977, plenary session. The article examines the present availability and scope if review of administrative decisions of the U.S. Customs Service. The author analyzes the overall operation if the Customs Service, procedures for internal review of Customs ,decisions and for assessment of penalties and other sanctions, and the distribution if jurisdiction …

The Politics Of Establishing An International Criminal Court, Michael P. Scharf

Faculty Publications

Any substantive evaluation of the plan for an international criminal court requires first an understanding of the political currents that underlie the competing proposals. This piece briefly explores the politics of creating a permanent international criminal court. In particular, this comment examines three related issues: (1) the need for an international criminal court, (2) the political obstacles involved in creating such an institution, and (3) the prospects for success in light of these obstacles.

The Puzzling Purposes Of Statutes Of Limitation, Tyler T. Ochoa, Andrew Wistrich

Faculty Publications

One hundred years ago, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. asked, "What is the justification for depriving a man of his rights, a pure evil as far as it goes, in consequence of the lapse of time?" A century later, we are still searching for a satisfactory answer to that question. The purpose of this Article is to press that inquiry further.

The law of limitation of actions is the set of legislatively and judicially created legal rules-including the classification of claims, the duration of limitation periods, the applicable principles of accrual and tolling, and the like-that determine whether a claim is …

A Critique Of The Yugoslavia War Crimes Tribunal In Report Of The International Law Association On An International Criminal Court, Michael P. Scharf

Faculty Publications

It is ironic that history has not been altogether kind to the Nuremberg Tribunal, labeling it "victor's justice," denouncing its application of ex post facto law, and rebuking its procedural shortcomings. Fifty years later, the world community has created another war crimes tribunal - the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. In its first annual report, this new Tribunal stated that "one can discern in the statute and the rules a conscious effort to avoid some of the often-mentioned flaws of Nuremberg and Tokyo." Because it will serve as the model for future ad hoc tribunals and a permanent …