The Rule of Law in the US, Compared

An interesting little article in the December 2010 issue of the ABA Journal compares the U.S.'s ratings in "rule of law" index, as compared to other countries.  Id., "Playing Catch-up," James Podgers.  The authors observes that the U.S. rates "no lower than 11th among the 35 countries covered by the index on any of nine key principles," but that it typically ranks among the lowest when compared to its "high-income and regional peers," and it "breaks the top three in only one category."

Specifically, the U.S, rated as follows on the 9 key factors:

Factor 1:  Limited governmental powers:  9th (Sweden was 1st, Netherlands 2nd, Australia 3rd)

Factor 2:  Absence of corruption:  10th  (Sweden was 1st, Netherlands 2nd, Australia 3rd)

Factor 3:  Clear, publicized and stable laws: 9th (Sweden was 1st, Netherlands 2nd, Japan 3rd)

Factor 4:  Order and security:  9th (Singapore was 1st, Japan 2nd, Australia 3rd)

Factor 5:  Fundamental rights: 10th (Australia was 1st, Sweden 2nd, Netherlands 3rd)

Factor 6:  Open government: 3rd (Sweden was 1st, Netherlands 2nd)

Factor 7:  Regulatory enforcement: 8th (Sweden was 1st, Netherlands 2nd, Australia 3rd)

Factor 8:  Access to civil justice:  11th (Singapore was 1st, Sweden 2nd, Netherlands 3rd)

Factor 9:  Effective criminal justice: 7th (Australia was 1st, Japan 2nd, Sweden 3rd)

If you are interested in arbitration, mediation, or contract ALJ services, please contact Pilar Vaile, P.C. at (505) 247-0802 or info@pilarvailepc.com.

Pilar Vaile

Pilar Vaile, P.C.

Albuquerque, NM

Risks of Obtaining Primary Legal Information from the Web

If you get the majority of your primary legal information from the free online sources, much of which is provided by governmental entities, then you are among the majority of lawyers today.  See 2009 American Bar Association Legal Technology Survey.  However, The American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), State-by-State Reports on Authentication of Online Legal Resources ("Authentication Report") (2007) demonstrates that we need to use great caution in relying on such information.

Judiciary Going Digital?

Members of the judiciary are often perceived as being a little, well, out of touch with the world.  As one example, commentators have pointed to Justice Scalia's recent questioning why a V-chip could not be used to regulate the ability of minors to watch violent video games, instead of the 2007 California law that was the subject of the oral arguments.  Apparently counsel for the State had to patiently, gently explain that V-chip technology only works in televisions... Nevertheless, jokes at the Justices' expense aside, the world has gone digital and it is inevitable that the judiciary will also be swept along in its wake, in time. 

ADR: End of Litigation as We Know It?

It's the end of the world as we know it

it's the end of the world as we know it,

and I feel fine.

- REM

Hilarie Bass recently wrote an editorial piece questioning whether we are seeing "The End of the Justice System as We Know It."  See ABA Journal of the Section of Litigation, Vol. 36, No. 4 (Su. 2010).  She opens by citing recent statistics that only approximately 1% of law suits today are ultimately resolved by way of a trial.  The number of cases proceeding to trial used to be more commonly estimated at about 5%, so this represents a shift that is worth considering.

Ms. Bass suggests several reasons for the decline in cases going to trial, including mounting litigation costs, increased uncertainty as to outcome, and the increasing court-mandated use of alternative dispute resolution processes.  All of these are certainly contributing factors.  However, I think the editorial overlooks an even more basic factor, and effectively puts the cart before the horse.

Epiphany

Please allow me to introduce myself:  I am what is known in today's parlance as an "alternative dispute resolution" professional.  Specifically, I am an arbitrator, mediator, and Certified Administrative Law Judge (CALJ), as well as a licensed attorney.  However, I am also a mom to very young children, and I recently had an epiphany as to how those roles can be reconciled.  Hint: Dr Seuss....