High Court hears arguments on right to counsel in civil contempt proceedings with possible jail time
On March 23, 2011, the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Turner v. Rogers – a case squarely addressing whether an indigent person can be jailed on civil contempt without being given a lawyer to represent him. Michael Turner served a year in prison when he was held in contempt by a South Carolina court for failing to timely pay child support, but he had to represent himself in court and had no lawyer to represent him.
Today the Department of Justice announced that it has issued a letter to chief justices and administrators of state courts regarding their obligation to provide oral interpretation, written translation and other lan
Justice Department letter to chief justices and administrators of state courts clarifying the obligation of courts that receive federal financial assistance to provide oral interpretation, written translation and other language services to people who are limited English proficient (LEP).
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On July 26, 2010, Laurence Tribe, Senior Counsel for the United States Department of Justice, Access to Justice Initiative, delivered an important speech to the
On July 26, 2010, Laurence Tribe, Senior Counsel for the United States Department of Justice, Access to Justice Initiative spoke to the Conference of Chief Justices at their annual conference in Vail, Colorado. The speech highlights the failure of our state courts to protect fairness for people of insufficient means in both the civil and criminal courts. Specific recommendations are made regarding what Chief Justices should do.
Items contained in the NLADA Library do not and are not meant to constitute advice of any kind. Content in the NLADA Library is contributed by users. If you believe this material infringes your or any other person’s copyright or if you feel that the material is inappropriate, please report this to NLADA Staff by clicking below.
Gideon Alert: New York Times highlights public defense crisis and the underfunding of legal services
A New York Times editorial on May 17, 2010 identifies the nexus between our nation’s deficient right to counsel systems and the failure of policymakers to address the underlying societal issues that increase the need for indigent defense services today. 
"Never give up!" is the advice given to those who "daily pick up the banner of fairness and equality, and just plain decency, for the most unfortunate in our society" by U.S. District Judge John Kane, providing the keynote address at NLADA's 2009 Annual Conference.
Items contained in the NLADA Library do not and are not meant to constitute advice of any kind. Content in the NLADA Library is contributed by users. If you believe this material infringes your or any other person’s copyright or if you feel that the material is inappropriate, please report this to NLADA Staff by clicking below.