Georgetown University Law Center

About: Georgetown University Law Center is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Supreme court & Global health. The organization has 585 authors who have published 2488 publications receiving 36650 citations. The organization is also known as: Georgetown Law & GULC.

Reconceptualizing Criminal Law Defenses

Abstract: In 1933, one of the leading theorists of the criminal law, Jerome Michael, wrote openly of the criminal law "as an instrument of the state." Today, criminal law is largely allergic to claims of political theory; commentators obsess about theories of deterrence and retribution, and the technical details of model codes and sentencing grids, but rarely speak of institutional effects or political commitments. In this article, the author aims to change that emphasis and to examine the criminal law as a tool for governance. Her approach is explicitly constructive: it accepts the criminal law that we have, places it in a counterfactual perspective, and asks what this means for institutional arrangements -- our relations to each other and to the state. This focus is then applied to reconceptualize a variety of criminal law defenses, ranging from self-defense and insanity to necessity and provocation. In the analysis of these doctrines, the author argues that defenses cannot be fully explained by the standard inquiry into individual minds, characters, or virtues. Instead, defenses reflect the need for a liberal polity to control vengeance. She goes on to argue that the standard view may yield a "paradox" of individualization which, in some cases, may actually work to the detriment of individuals. To undertake this kind of inquiry invites particular avenues of inquiry in the criminal law that have never received enough support, such as history and comparative law; and provides a new perspective on a variety of theoretical developments of the past decade, including the collapse of the harm principle, the increasing importance of social norm scholarship, and the impact of feminism on the substantive criminal law.

Virtue Jurisprudence: Towards an Aretaic Theory of Law

Abstract: “Virtue Jurisprudence: Towards an Aretaic Theory of Law” explores the implications of contemporary virtue ethics and virtue epistemology for legal theory. The topics explored include a virtue-centered theory of the function of law and an aretaic account of judging.

Pretrial Detention and the Decision to Impose Bail in Southern California

Abstract: This paper examines pretrial judicial decision making, specifically the decision to impose bail. At the bail hearing, judges must decide whether defendants should be detained, released on their own recognizance, or granted bail. In California, judges make this decision largely by relying on County Bail Schedules, which are similar to sentencing guidelines and prioritize the seriousness of the charged offense when determining bail. Being detained pretrial, either due to the denial of bail or the inability to afford the bail that was set has negative implications, including the fact that defendants who are denied bail are more likely to plead guilty, and upon conviction are more likely to be sentenced to incarceration. They also face longer sentences than defendants who are released pending trial. Despite the significant impact of the bail decision, there is limited research on the decision, including on the factors judges consider in making the bail decision and how judges make the decision. This paper presents the results of a qualitative study of bail hearings in two California counties.Relying on court observations and interviews, it finds that bail schedules are the most important factor considered by judges and that bail is usually set without regard to the ability of the defendant to pay.

What Will We Do When Adjudication Ends? A Brief Intellectual History of Adr

Abstract: This essay is an introduction to a symposium on Alternative Dispute Resolution. The essay reviews the development of scholarship, theory development, teaching and policy analysis in the law schools and through related disciplines, first in negotiation and then more broadly in alternative dispute resolution. The essay summarizes some of the key "propositions" of learning derived from conflict resolution theory and practice at the present time. The essay also pays tribute to scholars in the field who have recently died and reviews, briefly, their contributions to the field.

An Independent Review and Accountability Mechanism for the Sustainable Development Goals: The Possibilities of a Framework Convention on Global Health.

Abstract: The Framework Convention on Global Health (FCGH), a proposed global treaty to be rooted in the right to health and aimed at health equity, could establish a nuanced, layered, and multi-faceted regime of compliance with, and accountability to, the right to health. In so doing, it would significantly strengthen accountability for the health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which it would encompass. Legally binding, the FCGH could facilitate accountability through the courts and catalyze comprehensive domestic accountability regimes, requiring national strategies that include transparency, community and national mechanisms for accountability and participation and an enabling environment for social empowerment. A "Right to Health Capacity Fund" could ensure resources to implement these strategies. Inclusive national processes could establish targets, benchmarks, and indicators consistent with FCGH guidance, with regular reporting to a treaty body, which could also hear individual cases. State reports could be required to include plans to overcome implementation gaps, subjecting poorly complying states to penalties and targeted capacity building measures. Regional special rapporteurs could facilitate compliance through regular country visits, while also responding to serious violations. And reaching beyond government compliance, from capacity building to the courts and contractual obligations, the FCGH could establish nationally enforceable right to health obligations on the private sector.