| Sunshine Laws |
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| States have enacted Sunshine Laws to ensure governmental integrity and accountability. Sunshine Laws require governmental bodies (commissions, boards, advisory committees, and agencies) to hold open public meetings, deliberations, and votes, unless otherwise provided by law. Sunshine Laws also guarantee public access to the records of governmental bodies, unless provided otherwise by law. More... |
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| Grounds for Sanctioning State Judges |
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| Judges are subject to standards of judicial conduct. Their actions are required to conform to certain norms and standards that relate to impartiality and ethical behavior. There are codes of judicial conduct for both state and federal judges. This article discusses cases in which state judges have been sanctioned or removed for ethical violations. More... |
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| Technology in the Courtroom |
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| Courts are increasingly using technology to enhance the quality and the effectiveness of court proceedings. New York, Florida, Arizona, Minnesota, and Delaware all have state-of-the-art courtrooms. Technology is being used to increase the trier of fact's understanding of the evidence while reducing the length of trials and their cost. Information related to the case is stored and presented electronically. A CD-ROM will hold a transcript, an audio and a video recording of the trial and all evidence that was presented at trial, making a multi-media trial record. This article discusses how technology is being used in today's state-of-the art courtroom. More... |
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| Declaratory Judgments |
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| Laws have been adopted that give both the state courts and the federal courts the power to declare or define the legal rights, duties, obligations, or status of the parties involved in a dispute. In a declaratory judgment suit, the court does not award any damages and does not order either party to do anything.
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| Rules of Statutory Interpretation |
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| If the interpretation of a particular law becomes an issue in a case, the court must rely on rules of statutory interpretation or construction in deciding the law's meaning. This article discusses the main rules of statutory interpretation or construction. More... |
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