...Guidelines for You are the Judge Papers These are the guidelines for the You Are the Judge papers. Remember that each paper is worth up to 100 points and the information can come from any portion of the textbook, not just your currently assigned reading. The minimum length of the papers will be three double‐spaced pages. The maximum length of the papers will be seven double‐spaced pages. The required three papers will be prepared by the student using the following format (any other formats will not be accepted for credit): Legal Issues. State the legal issue(s) involved in this dispute as short legal questions in your first paragraph. Plaintiff's Arguments. What facts and legal rules support the Plaintiff's (the one suing) arguments? (second paragraph) Defendant's Arguments. What facts and legal rules support the Defendant's arguments? (third paragraph) My Decision as the Judge. "You be the Judge", who should prevail (win the case) and what legal rules control in this type of dispute, based on "these given facts"? (fourth and fifth paragraphs) My Own Opinion. Do you think the legal rules that currently apply are fair and reasonable, or should they be changed; explain your reasoning? (sixth paragraph) All legal rules, whether case law, common law, or statutory law cited in your discussions must be taken from somewhere in your class textbook materials. You should cite the page number or other reference to your textbook materials. ...
Words: 1136 - Pages: 5
...Case Example C: Legal Issues: The legal issues that are involved in case example 3 with Cy not following through with the contract he signed several months after being hired at the computer firm include a “breach of contract.” HawkaWaka Inc. must have their best interest in mind as the result of Cy opening a competitor business may cause foreseeable harm. With this the company must ask the following questions to make sure they will be thoroughly prepared to take on the case with confidence. Additionally Cy must be able to prove that his company won’t pose and threat or loss of business to his former employer. In the defense of Cy, the employer did not require that this document be signed until several months after Cy was hired. Cy believed that not signing the contract would pose a threat to his job stability and felt obligated to sign it. What type of breach did the defendant commit and how will it affect the company? What type of damage will the defendant cause the company presently, and in the future? In this case example, the breach of contract fall under the “inferior performance” category. As a result the plaintiff has the right to prove that the defendant in fact broke the contract and find the best way to recover restitution and recover damages. In the defense of Cy, the company must be able the questions in their defense. These include, why was Cy not required to sign this document prior to being hired at the firm? Is this a special circumstance or are all...
Words: 1136 - Pages: 5
...BECOMING A JUSTICE JUDGE BY ROB BRIGHTON CRIMINAL JUSTICE 1010 DECEMBER 2, 2011 ! I have been working in the Criminal Justice field for over four years as a Police Officer. I have experienced many things and am always looking to better myself in education and training. I hope to build on the background that I have now and pursue a Bachelors degree and eventually a Law degree so that I can become a Justice of the Peace or Judge. This paper is about an interview with a local magistrate, Judge Keith L. Stoney of Utahʼs 3rd District for Salt Lake County Judicial, West Valley City and Saratoga Springs Justice Courts. The time, the education, the benefits and the sometimes lengthy process of what it takes to sit on the “Bench” are all covered in the following paragraphs. JOB TITLE ! The official title of the position that Judge Stoney holds is as follows: Honorable Judge Keith L. Stoney Utahʼs 3rd District for Salt Lake County Judicial, West Valley City Justice Judge. Judge Stoney also works as Saratoga Springs Justice Judge. To break this down let me try to explain in brief how Utahʼs court system is organized. At the top you have Utahʼs two appellate courts, the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals. Next are the trial courts which include District, Justice and Juvenile Courts. There are also two administrative bodies, the Judicial of Council and the Administrative Office of the Court. Basically the policy making body of the courts. The state of Utah is divided into 8 judicial...
Words: 1965 - Pages: 8
...Stepping Up to the Podium with Confidence: A Primer for Law Students on Preparing and Delivering an Appellate Oral Argument James D. Dimitri1 Virtually all law students are required to learn oral advocacy skills at some point during their legal education. Typically, these skills are cultivated through at least one oral argument assignment, which often consists of an appellate oral argument that is given as part of the students’ first-year legal research and writing course or as part of a moot court competition. While appellate courts do not grant oral argument as often as they used to,2 oral advocacy remains a critical skill for law students to learn and cultivate, no matter which facet of law practice they enter upon graduation.3 Unfortunately, the prospect of learning this critical skill through an oral argument assignment can be disquieting to students. The main reason for this unease is simple: most law students have little to no oral advocacy experience. Students may, however, ease their anxiety and ultimately deliver an excellent oral argument if they fully understand the purposes of the argument and if they thoroughly prepare for the argument. This article is targeted at oral argument novices. It discusses how you, as a beginner to appellate oral argument, may effectively prepare and deliver an argument, particularly if you are Clinical Associate Professor of Law, Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis; J.D., Summa cum laude, 1993, Valparaiso University School...
Words: 10851 - Pages: 44
...Problem 1: (25 points) Hamilton county judges try thousands of cases per year. In an overwhelming majority of the cases disposed, the verdict stands as rendered. However, some cases are appealed, and of those appealed, some of the cases are reversed. Kristen DelGuzzi of The Cincinnati Enquirer conducted a study of cases handled by Hamilton county judges over a three-year period. The data is in the file Judge. It contains results for 182,908 cases handled (disposed) by 38 judges in the Common Pleas Court, Domestic Relations Court and Municipal Court. Two of the judges (Dinkelacker and Hogan) did not serve in the same court for the entire three year period. The purpose of the newspaper’s study was to evaluate the performance of the judges. Appeals are often a result of mistakes made by the judges, and the newspaper wanted to know which judges were doing a good job and which were making too many mistakes. You are called on to assist in the data analysis. Use your knowledge of probability and conditional probability to help with the ranking of judges. You may be able to analyze the likelihood of appeal and reversal for cases handled by different judges. Managerial Report: Prepare a report with your rankings of the judges. Also, include an analysis of the likelihood of appeal and case reversal in the three courts. At a minimum, your report should include the following: 1. The probability of cases being appealed and reversed in the three different courts. 2. The probability...
Words: 303 - Pages: 2
...for EACH judge * Probability of a case being reversed for EACH judge * Probability of reversal given an appeal for EACH judge * Ranking of each judge within each court. State the criteria you are using for your ranking AND provide the rationale for your choice. * Analysis: Who is doing a good job AND who is not? Why do you think so? Use your created ranking criteria to analyze the data 1. Probability of cases appealed and reversed in each court The Common Pleas Court, the probability of an appeal is 0.0401 Domestic Relation Court, the probability of an appeal is 0.00384 Municipal Court, the probability of an appeal is 0.00461 The unconditional probability of an appeal across all 3 courts is (1762/43945)*(198/43945) +(106/30945)*(17/30945) +(500/108464)*(104/108464) = 1.87*10^-4 2. Probability of case being appeal for each judge were given 5 columns of the table and it come out to this. (1762 +106+500)/(43945+30495+108464)=0.0129 3. For this case the judges were given 7 columns of the table. Judges Winkler Panioto, and Grady have to lowest probability of reversal for Common Pleas, Domestic Relations, and Municipal Courts. All of these are probabilities of reversal for all cases disposed of and not only for one appealed. 4. The probability for the reversal was given 9 columns for each judge. The judges Panioto, Grady/Hair, and Nurre are the lowest probability of reversal. 5. The Cincinnati Enquirer provided ranking for each judges within...
Words: 360 - Pages: 2
...TO READ A LEGAL OPINION A GUIDE FOR NEW LAW STUDENTS Orin S. Kerr Copyright © 2007 Orin S. Kerr Second Series • Autumn 2007 Volume 11 • Number 1 Published by The Green Bag, Inc., in cooperation with the George Mason University School of Law. HOW TO READ A LEGAL OPINION A GUIDE FOR NEW LAW STUDENTS Orin S. Kerr† This essay is designed to help new law students prepare for the first few weeks of class. It explains what judicial opinions are, how they are structured, and what law students should look for when reading them. W I. WHAT’S IN A LEGAL OPINION? hen two people disagree and that disagreement leads to a lawsuit, the lawsuit will sometimes end with a ruling by a judge in favor of one side. The judge will explain the ruling in a written document referred to as an “opinion.” The opinion explains what the case is about, discusses the relevant legal principles, and then applies the law to the facts to reach a ruling in favor of one side and against the other. Modern judicial opinions reflect hundreds of years of history and practice. They usually follow a simple and predictable formula. This † Orin Kerr is a professor of law at the George Washington University Law School. This essay can be freely distributed for non-commercial uses under the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported license. For the terms of the license, visit creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/legalcode. 11 GREEN BAG 2D 51 ...
Words: 4473 - Pages: 18
...At its core, a North Dakota warrant is an order by a judge that permits law enforcement to perform an act for the purpose of administering justice. There are three types of warrants: bench warrants, arrest warrants, and search warrants. Although these warrants have different names, they share the common purpose of permitting law enforcement to take action. If you have been served with a warrant of any type in North Dakota, you will need a North Dakota criminal defense and warrant lawyer to handle your case. Many people mistakenly believe that an active warrant permits an arrest to take place but an inactive warrant does not. If the North Dakota court system states that your case is inactive, this simply means that the case is placed on hold by the court until an event occurs which allows the case to proceed. Usually, the event that needs to take place is the arrest of the person accused in the case. Once arrested, a hearing will take place before the judge and the case will become active again. An inactive case does not mean that your case has concluded or that you will not be held responsible for your alleged crime. Many of Wynne Law’s clients have been on the receiving end of search warrants, bench warrants, and arrest warrants. Often, the person with a warrant out...
Words: 1515 - Pages: 7
...Theme Topic Rewards for Participation Divisions Contest Categories Important Notices for Contestants Program Materials 6 6 6 6 7 7 7 II. Rules For All Categories A. General Rules for All Categories B. Required Written Material for All Entries C. Contest Participation 8 10 11 III. Individual Category Rules A. B. C. D. E. Paper Exhibit Performance Documentary Web Site 13 15 17 17 19 IV. How Will Your Entry Be Judged? A. B. C. D. E. F. G. Benefits of the Evaluation Process Who are the Judges? How Does the Evaluation Process Work? Consensus Judging The Subjective Nature of Judging The Decision of the Judges is Final Evaluation Criteria i. Historical Quality ii. Relation to Theme iii. Clarity of Presentation H. Rule Compliance I. Sample Judge’s Evaluation 22 22 22 22 23 23 23 23 23 23 24 24 25 27 NATIONAL HISTORY DAY V. Category Checklist For Further Information 3 What is National History Day? National History Day (NHD) is a yearlong educational program that makes history come alive every day. You learn about interesting issues, ideas, people, and events of your choosing. It is an exciting way to study history because you express what you have learned in a creative and original performance, documentary, paper, web site, or exhibit. Through NHD you learn the skills and techniques of the historian...
Words: 7143 - Pages: 29
...Courtroom Observation Report Judges can alleviate much of the public dissatisfaction with the judicial branch by paying critical attention to the key elements of procedural fairness: voice, neutrality, respectful treatment, and engendering trust in authorities. Judges must be aware of the dissonance that exists between how they view the legal process and how the public before them view it. While judges should definitely continue to pay attention to creating fair outcomes, they should also tailor their actions, language, and responses to the public’s expectations of procedural fairness. By doing so, these judges will establish themselves as legitimate authorities; substantial research suggests that increased compliance with court orders and decreased recidivism by criminal offenders will result. Procedural fairness also will lessen the difference in how minority populations perceive and react to the courts. Hon. Kevin Burke, Minnesota District Court, Hennepin County, and Hon. Steve Leben, Kansas Court of Appeals “Procedural Fairness: A key ingredient in public satisfaction,” Court Review This observation report has two parts. The first part centers on the four principles of procedural justice: neutrality, respect, trust, and voice. For each principle, we ask a question and request three responses: (a) check which behaviors you observed, (b) describe the judge’s performance on the bench, and (c) score the judge on that principle. We’ve provided a brief description of each principle...
Words: 1175 - Pages: 5
...to appear for arraignment. Again the criminal will be advised of your rights and told about the charges against you. The defendant may have an attorney present or if the defendant cannot afford attorney one will be appointed to the defendant. You may waive your right to a formal arraignment; charges against you will not be read in court and posted to public record. The judge presiding at the arraignment will set bail in accordance to the law. The accused may be released from court on your own recognizance; your bail will be set. The judge could have you remanded if you have a prior felony or you could be remanded without bail if the judge determines it is necessary. If the judge considers bail you could a bail bond or put up collateral example property such as a house or something expensive. If you leave before your trial the property becomes the property of the state (Meyers J). If you decide to skip out trail, which is known as bail jumping is a separate crime. The consequences would be that you would receive a bench warrant for your arrest. The trial could go on without your presence and if you are caught at a later time. You could give up all your right to appeal your case. It is not out of the ordinary for your attorney and the prosecutor to discuss your case. It is known as a side bar or bench conference in this meeting a plea bargin could be struck and the charges reduce. Your attorney usually discusses this after his bench conference. If the...
Words: 552 - Pages: 3
...2 The State Judicial Process The State Judicial Selection Process Have you ever wondered how the judges within your state are chosen? The way a judge is chosen for the state varies from state to state, and there are a few ways they are put on the bench. One way for a judge to be put on the bench is to be appointed by the Governor or state legislature (FindLaw, 2012). A second way to choose a judge is through a merit selection. A merit selection is where a judge is chosen by a legislative committee based on each of the potential judge's performance in the past (FindLaw, 2012). A third way to get a judge on the bench is by a partisan election; in which a judge is selected through partisan elections that are voted in by the electorate, or voters registered to parties, because judges often run as part of a political party affiliate (FindLaw, 2012). A Non-Partisan Election is the final way to get on the bench. This is when the potential judges running for a judicial position in the states can put their names on the ballot, but they do not list their political party affiliates (National League of Cities, 2014). In the state of Florida, judges being elected for a term in the state trial courts of general jurisdiction are elected by way of a nonpartisan election (Carp, Stidham, & Manning, 2014). When judges are being selected for a term in the state courts of last resort, the state of Florida utilizes a merit selection (Carp, Stidham, & Manning, 2014). The length of...
Words: 1994 - Pages: 8
...Fullilove Mrs.Broughton United States Goverment 4.02 Judicial Review The Honorable Patti A. Christensen Today I will be interviewing Ms. Salaverez about her career of being a judge. Natasha: How is your role in government different from an elected official? Mrs.Patti: My role in the government can be different from those who are elected officials, I am there to overlook the case and see the evidence, I'm there to make sure that all facts that are stated are facts and that everything is fair. Judges exist to serve the people. Us Judges aren't elected on political party, the presidents appoints this person not people. Natasha : Okay, I can understand that. The president elects who becomes the judge because your main role is to focus on the people. So how are elected officials and judges the same? Ms.Patti, I would say elected officials and judges are the same because we all serve for the same purpose, for the people. At the end of the day we all just want equality in our community and to know that we did all we could do for the people. Natasha: And we as the people do appreciate that. Which brings me another question: Do you feel that judges are under appreciated? Mrs.Patti: I think we are appreciated, it's just I don't think the people of our country know how big of a role judges or political elected officials play in our country. But who's to blame? Things like that don't really concern people until election time and maybe not even then. Natasha: That...
Words: 603 - Pages: 3
...Hi Pari, There are some great points in your essay and they led me to an avenue of thought regarding impartiality and bias. While most would agree judges are human and therefore flawed individuals with particular biases or predetermined ideas this is not necessarily a insurmountable deterrent to making impartial rulings as long as the Judge can objectively and actively balance and challenge their bias. In other words if a person knows that they harbor a harsher (or easier) stance on a particular group or type of crime they may then exert their own self monitoring system to “cleanse” or account for that implicit bias or work to counter or to question their ingrained responses. According to Bernice B. Donald, the 6th U.S Circuit Court of Appeals...
Words: 733 - Pages: 3
...Guam Unified Court System Research Paper for Judicial Process Instructor: Doctor Elberg By Donna Halbrook Guam Unified Court System The Judiciary of Guam is pleased to join the United States of America as the fifty-first state. The newest chapter of our judiciary journey begins with some major objectives in mind. One of these objectives is to increase access to justice for every member of our community. Another major objective is to ensure the Judiciary serves as a model of good governance. We will promote accountability, performance, and transparency (Torres 2010). The new court will be a unified court system, very serving and strong at the foundation levels where we meet the people at. We will start at the foundation and build to the highest court, the State Supreme Court of Guam. Supreme Court Court of Appeals [Problem Solving Courts] Foundation Courts Foundation Courts: Problem Solving Courts | Village Court | Trial Court | Family Court | Village Courts The Village Courts will play a vital role in the Guam State Unified Court System. These courts have broad jurisdiction and they hear both civil and criminal matters (New York State Office of Court Administration 1996-2011). In Guam, this will be for the smaller but very numerous legal affairs of our citizens. There will be a Village Court associated with each of the four police precincts, thus embracing the entire population of Guam. The offices and chambers for these courts will be in close...
Words: 5605 - Pages: 23
