Preview

Adversary Model of Litigation

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
970 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Adversary Model of Litigation
The adversarial model of litigation is the system of justice that we use in the United States. The adversary model relies on each advocate to represent their cause or party and ultimately a jury to come to a finding. Justice has been served when one advocate is able to convince the judge or jury that they are in the right. Our legal system was created in order to find the truth in injustices and restore justice. Over the years many people have found faults in our adversarial model of litigation as they believe the main goal of the legal system has gone astray. The system has gained criticism in which we will further discuss in this paper. Any legal system should stand to successfully find the truth in any injustice and bring upon punitive measures. In a society that has become infatuated with wealth and success while also becoming excessively greedy, it is not surprising that people will do anything to get ahead. Lawsuits are filed every single day even over the smallest altercation or incident. Our country has become more concerned with winning lawsuits and settlements in court and less concerned with our ability to settle altercations peacefully outside of court. Former Chief Justice, Warren E. Burger, made a statement about the courts explaining that “Americans are increasingly turning to the courts for relief from a range of personal distresses and anxieties”. Burger, who was an advocate of out of court mediation, was trying to prove that many people file unnecessary lawsuits and lawyers begin to fight to avoid the truth rather than to find it. The problem is that many lawyers have become more interested in deception in order to win rather than accepting the truth and consequences. It has become more favorable to settle disputes than to seek the whole truth. The legal system has also been critiqued as being incredibly slow. The entire process, which may in many cases be thorough, has a tendency to drag lawsuits out. Due to procedural rules and the grueling
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Judical Selection Process in Pa and Arizona
    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Judical Selection Process in Pa and Arizona

    References: Carp, Robert A., Ronald Stidham, and Kenneth L. Manning. "chapter 6." Judicial process in America. 8th ed. Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2011. 125. Print.…

    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    What Is Plea Bargaining Ethical?
    • 240 Words
    • 1 Page

    What Is Plea Bargaining Ethical?

    There is no justice if there is no trial and there is no trial when the legal system is engaging in unethical…

    • 240 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Adversary vs. Civil Law
    • 938 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Adversary vs. Civil Law

    The two legal systems in question are the adversary system, most commonly practiced in the United States, and the civil law system, also referred to as the inquisitorial system, most commonly practiced in European countries. Both systems have the same goal; to find the truth. However, each system has a very different path to justice. The adversarial system implies that two parties assume opposite positions in debating the guilt or innocence of an individual. In this scenario, the judge is required to be neutral at the contest unfolding before him or her. The role of the judge in this arrangement is to ensure the trial proceeds according to the procedural rules of trial or due process of law and that evidence entered is done so accordingly. The basis of this approach in criminal matters in which two sides engage in debate and battle about the guilt or innocence of an accused and since each side wants to win, then the debate will foster a critical look at the issues and the evidence to be examined by both parties. By engaging in this discourse, the truth should emerge as the judge watches on. This means that the roles played on both sides are very distinct. The defense counsel as one adversarial party gather the arguments to defend the client and attacks the credibility and worthiness of the evidence presented. The prosecutor puts forth the arguments on behalf of the state and gathers and presents the evidence pointing that the accused has committed an offense. The judge is the referee and arbitrator on issues related to clarifying what the law is. The judge does not intervene on any side except where procedural fairness is jeopardized by either party as dictated by the Sixth Amendment. In an inquisitorial system, a judge is involved in the preparation of evidence along with the police and in how the various parties are to present their case at the trial. The judge questions witnesses in depth and can even call witnesses to appear while prosecution and defense…

    • 938 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Miss
    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Miss

    TOPIC: “Our adversary system of trial works very well. It cannot be improved.” Discuss this statement and indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with it and justify your conclusion.…

    • 523 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Courts Real vs Fiction
    • 1613 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Courts Real vs Fiction

    This same belief extends to Americans’ knowledge about the law and the judicial system of the nation. There are many things that fictional accounts of lawyers, judges, and courts confuse or create simply to meet the needs of the fiction or make a specific point. Because the intricacies of the legal profession are not well known or explained in school or by the media, unfortunately, people often only have fictional accounts of the law to educate them. The result, unfortunately, is that the majority of Americans have incorrect beliefs of the law, judges, courts, and the persons that interact with them. One of the main differences between fictional portrayals of the court process and real court processes is how the trial is portrayed. In reality, trials are long, boring procedures where attorneys debate, present evidence, and ask questions that have legal value for the judge or jury to arrive at a decision (CA). Many things are said and many witnesses may be brought in to make statements (CA). Only rarely in that process will anything exciting happen. If one were to believe the portrayal of the trial sequence, however, seems as if every minute is interesting or exciting. Trials presented in movies such as My Cousin Vinny or To Kill a Mockingbird, although one is a comedy and one a drama, represent trials as a place where shocking facts are discovered and quick thinking attorneys make major differences in trial outcomes.…

    • 1613 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Effectiveness of the Criminal Trial Process as a Means of Achieving Justice
    • 971 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Effectiveness of the Criminal Trial Process as a Means of Achieving Justice

    The criminal trial process aims to provide justice for all those involved, while it succeeds in the majority of cases, it effectiveness is influenced and reduced by certain factors. These include the legal representation involved in a case and the availability of legal aid, the capacity of the jury assessing the trial, the credibility of scientific evidence and the impact of social media on the trial process. Due to such flaws the criminal trial process is not always an effective means of achieving justice.…

    • 971 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Court Systems Paper
    • 1224 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Court Systems Paper

    The United States court system is composed of numerous sections of bodies of law that function together to ensure justness is served in fulfillment with the United States Constitution, federal, state and local laws. These organizations include law enforcement, the courts and, correction system all of which have a legitimate responsibility to maintain the American Peoples trust. I am a strong advocate for our court system, although it can use some fine-tuning every level of Justice could stand some improvement but that takes time, commitment and the right officials in office.…

    • 1224 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Jury Trial Analysis Paper
    • 1200 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Jury Trial Analysis Paper

    In this paper I will provide an analysis of a jury trial; my analysis will focus on the right of the defendant. I will articulate how a defendant 's rights at trial can be assured when it comes to The defendant’s right to a speedy trial, the defendant’s right to an impartial judge and the defendant’s right to an impartial jury.…

    • 1200 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Dispute Resolution Parties
    • 771 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Dispute Resolution Parties

    In the United States, a traditional litigation refers to the process of bringing, defending and maintaining a lawsuit (Cheeseman, 2010). Traditional litigation goes through a structured process of answer, discovery trial and jury. Whereas the nontraditional litigation process, alternative dispute resolution, known as ADR is a more flexible, less expensive, not as time consuming, and confidential process. There are several forms of alternative dispute resolution, mediation, arbitration, negotiation, conciliation, mini-trial, fact-finding and utilizing a judicial referee. Arbitration and mediation are similar to where it is a form of negotiation and a neutral party settles the dispute. Negotiation is where the two parties negotiate to settle the dispute. A mini-trial is a shortened version of a traditional litigation trial. Fact-finding situations call for the parties to employ a third party to investigate the facts to come to a resolution. Lastly, a judicial referee is much like a mini-trial but both parties reserve the right to appeal. Ninety percent of cases are resolved through alternative dispute resolution (Harms, 2011). The next several paragraphs will identify risks associated with traditional litigation and the advantages of the alternative dispute resolution in reducing those risks.…

    • 771 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Court History and Purpose
    • 745 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Court History and Purpose

    The court plays a very critical role in American Criminal Justice. Without the development of courts, those who violate the law would face no penalty and would commit crimes and walk free. In this paper I will evaluate and examine the American Criminal court system. I will describe the court and the purpose that it serves as so I will also define the dual court system. I will also describe the role that early legal codes, the common law and the precedent played in the development of courts.…

    • 745 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Frivolous Lawsuits
    • 2390 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Frivolous Lawsuits

    As American citizens we do it everyday: we see something wrong and form ideas of suing. Whether our intentions are resolute or passive, the simple gesture itself poses a series of questions for why Americans find the courtrooms a haven to the solutions for their troubles. Although our forefathers didn't plan on suits like suing McDonalds for serving hot coffee or causing obesity in children in America, they did create a judicial system that was easily accessible and fair. If examining the root of the problem, we must look back over 200 years ago, when our forefathers envisioned a country with justice and equality, without the idea of abusing the legal system with the intention of financial betterment in mind. In fact, over the past 50 years, America has resorted to the legal system with that exact intention. A major gateway to this broad social change occurred when congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This era, known as the "due process revolution," was when lawyers won criminal defendants the right to a lawyer and a hearing (Jost). The aged and disabled began fighting for their rights, and eventually employees in the workplace caught on to the courtroom trend…

    • 2390 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Jury Trial Analysis
    • 956 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Jury Trial Analysis

    In the United States of America, the criminal justice system is based on the adversarial system or common law system. An adversarial trial allows the accused or defendant to be given a fair chance to prove his or her innocence. The Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution states that the defendant is to be given a fair chance to oppose the prosecution, have witnesses to help with his or her defense, face and question the complainant, and for his or her case to be heard by a group of people who are unbiased and impartial. This group is known as the trial jury.…

    • 956 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Court Systems
    • 1646 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Court Systems

    This paper is about a court case, different types of federal and state courts, and new technology used in court cases.…

    • 1646 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Essay On Tort Reform
    • 1008 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Essay On Tort Reform

    It is all about personal viewpoints. All it takes is one misunderstood detail to blow a case out of proportion. Reporters use facts from cases that can be interpreted in many different ways. These humorous and minute details are used to get publicity and are tarnishing the reputation of civil lawsuits. Lawsuits are very beneficial for the relationship between consumers and companies. It lets the companies know what consumers do and do not want from their company. There is a definite need for the tort reform, but no need to get rid of civil lawsuits all together. Putting caps on rewards should be enough. Getting rid of civil lawsuits would only anger the public. Every citizen has the right to speak his or her mind, even if it may seem petty. Being able to speak their mind is important to most people in society these days. If people received less in punitive damages, but were at least able to continue to file lawsuits, then there should not be that big of an issue. With having the tort reform, a large amount of money could be saved. There are a ton of other strategies to help the justice system save money. Taking out civil lawsuit could save money, but would hurt the economy in many other ways. Limiting lawsuits is not the answer to saving the economy…

    • 1008 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Evolution of Court System
    • 1191 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Evolution of Court System

    The United States court system has evolved in many ways since its inception. While there are many issues that courts and court administrators face in today 's society, the U.S. court system has improved immensely and can continue to improve in the future. Through the evaluation of the evolution of the United States court system 's handling of victim 's rights during court proceedings, one can better understand how the court system will deal with the future management of issues, as well as other trends that will occur in areas such as language interpretation services. Historically, the United States court system functioned in a manner that is very different from the ways in which it functions today. One of the stark differences between the U.S. court system of yesterday and the U.S. court system of today was its general focus. Though the United States court systems began, during colonial times, to focus their punitive efforts in restoring the losses of victims of crimes, from the 1850 's to the early 1970 's, much of the focus of the United States court systems became creating punishments that scared criminals who committed crimes into becoming upright citizens (Derene, et al, 2007). The United States court systems are based on a mixture of many cultural principles of justice, which influenced how punishments were handed down by the courts (Derene, et al, 2007). Many of the principles of the court system were based on Roman principles, which focused on the administration of public laws, laws that “dealt with the organization and administration of the Republic,” as well as private laws, which “addressed issues such as contracts; possession and other property rights; injuries to citizens; and the legal status of various persons, such as slaves, husbands, and wives (Derene, et al, 2007).” Using these principles along with other principles that were adopted by other companies, United States court systems based many of their judgments on the idea that restitution was…

    • 1191 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More

Related Topics