Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Fall 1994
ISSN
1041-5548
Publisher
Georgetown University Law Center
Language
en-US
Abstract
This Article is divided into three parts. Part I examines both the many contexts in which criminal defense lawyers and clinical students encounter bias and prejudice,12 and the commonly-raised objections to its exploitation. Part II looks at the way the tactical use of bias relates to a lawyer's duty of zealous advocacy. Here, the Article focuses on whether existing ethics rules provide guidance for a lawyer's use of bias and whether proposed rules aimed at eliminating such advocacy would improve or diminish justice. This article argues against such efforts because they impinge on legitimate lawyering, and they may distract the bar from the more serious ethical problem of under-zealousness, particularly in the representation of poor people. In short, any restrictions on lawyer advocacy provide a rationalization for less aggressive advocacy. Finally, Part III considers the clinical teacher's unique role in addressing these issues. As illustrations, two cases handled by students in the Boston University Criminal Clinic are examined. These cases demonstrate the pervasiveness of bias in the criminal justice system, the opportunities this provides for exploring the innate conflicts of lawyering, and the impact of these lessons in forging identities for new lawyers.
Recommended Citation
Eva S. Nilsen,
The Criminal Defense Lawyer's Reliance on Bias and Prejudice
,
in
8
Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics
1
(1994).
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/faculty_scholarship/3878
Included in
Courts Commons, Criminal Law Commons, Criminal Procedure Commons, Legal Education Commons, Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Commons, Legal Profession Commons
