Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied, Essay Example

Introduction

‘Justice delayed is justice denied’, this is a legal maxim that is often used to explain that where a party has suffered some form of injury, then the concept of redress should be carried out in a timely fashion. This philosophy works on the basis of a person’s entitlement to a speedy trial and as such the right to a timely resolution through the legal system.  The quote was made by William Gladstone, a British Politician, when making a speech to parliament in 1868. It also appeared in a Louisiana Law journal in 1842.  The greatest claim to fame going to its appearance in the English Magna Carta at the time of King John in 1215.

Impact on Court Administration

There is no doubt that this is reflected in the legal system in the USA and the administrative support system behind the judicial and legal apparatus supporting the trial courts.  Delays in justice are now common place.  Perhaps one of the best examples being in Los Angeles, California where it has been stated “department that oversees the court system’s budget – plans on closing more than 180 LA courtrooms to cut costs. This will reduce the court’s workforce by 34 percent, and permanently close nine entire courthouses.” (Peters, 2010). The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) is trying to resolve the delay problem by the introduction of a state of the art computer system. They are in the process of implementing the $1.75 billion system across all the States.  This has not been without its critics who complain that it is already $260 million over budget and the entire system is considered flawed with numerous operational problems and downtime being experienced. ” The millions of dollars that the AOC plans on spending to finish this unwieldy and unusable computer system could instead go towards keeping courts open and preventing layoffs” (Peters, 2010).  A somewhat persuasive argument during times of unemployment and recession.

The Concept of delay

The concept of a delay in the courtroom workgroup may be abnormal or unacceptable lapses in the processing of the case.  Some of the major issues in significant delay includes laptop:

• It places at risk a speedy trial laws. [6th amendment];
• it may place at risk, speedy convictions;
• it can erode public confidence in the judicial procedures;
• it may lead to detrimental plea-bargaining  or lenient  negotiated bargains;
• it may extend jail overcrowding and the defendant not attending required court appearances;

The defendant would be impacted at various stages of the criminal justice process.  [Barker vs. Wingo 1972].  The courts in the USA have tried to reduce delays by improving the caseload management systems monitoring all of the procedures from commencement of the trial to the dispensation of justice.  Improvements made in the 1970s included the following;

• US Supreme Court, due process mandate;
• improve judicial administration standards;
• more professional call managers;
• federal government policies and grants;
• Research shows delay does not correlate to court size, volume 4 quart capacity.

Early conclusions drawn from these changes include;

• Court delays are not solely due to quart sizes;
• solutions proposed, based purely on resources for revamping processes are not alone reduced delay;
• There needs to be a long-term commitment to the active management of the process of litigation

Case History Examples

Perhaps one of the best examples being the Exxon Valdez oil spill which resulted in a $5 billion punitive damage award against the Exxon Corporation.  The spill ruining the lives of the local fisherman and the environment they worked in . Today the legal battle still carries on ” Now, more than seven years after the spill and nearly two years after the jury verdict, no final judgment on the jury verdict has been entered by the federal court, the agonizingly long appeals process has not yet begun, and the ten thousand fishermen who won at trial face years of additional litigation and delay” (Hirsh, 2010).  This may prove to be a suitable analogy to the current BP Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the litigation actions that will surely follow here.  BP this week posted the largest corporate loss ever in its history, being some $17 billion.  No doubt this will create further delays in the legal compensation for those who have had their livelihood destroyed by the consequences of the environmental damage caused by the spill.

Works Cited

Hirsh, W. B. (2010). The exxon valdez litigation justice delayed: . Retrieved 7 27, 2010, from Lief Cabraser: http://www.lieffcabraser.com/wbh_exxart.htm

Peters, S. R. (2010, 4 29). Justice Delayed is Justice Denied. Retrieved 7 27, 2010, from EPGNEWS.com: http://egpnews.com/?p=17810