8.8 Procedures

• Library: Juvenile Law and Practice in Virginia (Virginia CLE) (2018 Ed.)

8.8 PROCEDURES

The due process standard of fundamental fairness applies to juvenile court proceedings. Consequently, the adjudicatory hearing should have a certain degree of formality in spite of the traditional parens patriae atmosphere of the court. As juvenile proceedings come to have more serious consequences, the gulf between juvenile court processes and those of the criminal court must inevitably narrow. One essential element of due process is the juvenile's understanding of his or her trial rights...