Attorney ghostwriting is bad..
| Author | Michael E. Friedman |
| Pages | 6-6 |
INDIGENT DEFENSE
Regarding “Defendant’s
Choice,” June, page 18, as
someone who once ha d the
job of appointing counsel
of the public defender’s
oce to various indigent
clients, the criteria w as the
attorneys’ cas eloads and
the gravity of ea ch and the
types of ca ses. We were
trying to spre ad the attor-
neys between all c riminal
courtrooms, fa ctoring
in the experience of eac h
attorney a nd each attor-
ney’s strength. The oce
of the public defender
should continue to appoint
the indigents’ counsel and
leave the court to appoint
counsel when t here
appears to be a conflic t.
We had one lawyer
who looked like Abraham
Lincoln, and every one
of the alleged crimi nals
wanted him. And a s we
well know, everyone
cannot have Abe.
Kathy Dills
Memphis, Tennessee
GHOSTWRITING ETHICS
Regard ing “Ghostw riting
Controversy,” June, page
24, I am on the fence as
to whether this is ethic al
and a good practice. On
the one hand, I agree that
ghostwrit ing can help pro
se litigants asser t rights
and arguments they m ay
otherwise be un aware of.
However, what happens
when the pro se is asked
to make an arg ument
based on the ghostw ritten
document? If the pro se
doesn’t know what his/her
own document means, the
judge is put in a predica-
ment where he is tempted
to assume what the arg u-
ments might be. The alter-
native is to disregar d
anything but the plain
meaning of the document,
which can also be prob -
lematic. This may cross a
line into judicial advoc acy.
Further, for an argument
to be eective and genuine,
it should be understood by
the person presenting it.
Ton y Fr an k
St. Charles, Illinoi s
Attorney ghostwriting
is bad, but worse is a pro
se who does not make
relevant arguments. In
Los Angeles, there ar e
self-help programs for pro
se in family law that as sist
in writing and ed iting
the forms. The clerks who
assist are ac tual family law
paralegals and do a goo d
job of helping low-income
people get divorced.
Michael E. Fried man
Hacie nda Heigh ts,
Californ ia
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CORRECTION
Due to a reporting error, “Do As I S ay,” July, page 34,
gave the impression that Nicole Black had rev iewed the
security of Nuance’s Dragon dic tation software. She
has not conducted such a review.
The Jour nal regr ets the error.
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