A study explores how and to what extent eight Indiana newspapers in six communities use attorneys in the editorial process and to resolve disputes. Editors who supervise the newsrooms of the eight papers were interviewed using a questionnaire composed of both closed and open-ended questions. Results indicated that newspapers in the larger…

Most of the literature relevant to today's religious cults has paid scant attention to the parents of cult members. Two recent studies (1979 and 1982) of parents of ex-cult members revealed that initial parental responses to a child's cult involvement ranged from anxiety to terror. In general, the parents were baffled by their children's new…

A negotiation course in law schools offers an opportunity to examine negotiation institutions, giving law students a chance not only to participate in the bargaining arenas but also to help design and reform them. Such a course would examine the large world of litigation rather than the small realm of adjudication. (MSE)

Like other types of dispute resolution, mediation brings the parties in conflict together to solve their problems. It provides a fresh perspective by introducing a third party who is entirely neutral and is skilled in helping parties solve their problems. With the increasing dissatisfaction with the formal justice system, mediation has been…

Uses family systems theory to conceptualize family dissolution and child custody disputes. Describes a family assessment model involving a therapy team with each member responsible for a family subsystem. The role of each therapist and the functioning of the team is outlined. Criteria for determining custody recommendations are identified. (JAC)

Recent court decisions and federal legislation which have contributed to conflicts in the delivery of services to emotionally disturbed adolescents are reviewed and possible solutions are examined. The impact of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Public Law 94-142 (the Education for All Handicapped Children Act) are assessed along with such…

A study examined the effect of assigned social decision rule (whether a jury is required to give a unanimous or less than unanimous verdict) on the process and product of mock jury deliberations. Subjects, 360 students from an eastern university, were randomly assigned to six-member juries under three decision rule conditions: (1) unanimity, (2)…

This exploratory essay suggests the contours of a social history of law and public education. The essay departs from two traditional approaches to educational law: the study of landmark cases, and textbooks that delimit legally approved practice. Instead the changing dialectic between statutory and court-decided law is analyzed, stressing how…

In order to examine jury deliberations, researchers simulated and videotaped court proceedings and jury deliberations based upon an actual civil court case. Special care was taken to make the simulated trial as authentic as the original trial. College students and the general public provided the jurors, which were then divided into twelve separate…

The interest in the research conducted on the level of understanding that jurors have of the instructions used in Florida criminal trials, the impact of time delay on juror comprehension, the value of reading a copy of the instructions as they were presented orally by the judge, and the relationship between comprehension of the law and attitude…

Researchers who have attempted to study the functioning of the jury in the United States have been hampered by the absolute confidentiality of jury deliberations. Research methodologies have tried to circumvent this difficulty by using simulated juries, and have focused largely on the influence of the social status of jurors during deliberations.…

The House Judiciary Committee debates over the Articles of Impeachment during the Watergate hearings provided the unique opportunity for citizens to observe the process of congressional decision making. Emphasizing diversity, compromise, and reasoned argument, members defined their role as a combination of judge, juror, and average common-sense…

Education must be served by education law. This chapter analyzes determinants to education law and recommends that corrective inquiry begin with the National Organization on Legal Problems of Education (NOLPE). Special interest advocacy groups can be deterrents to education law. For example, the Supreme Court made contradictory decisions in 1982…

This study examines the relative effects of information on problem solving. An introductory section discusses theoretical approaches to problem solving. The major portion of the paper describes the author's research. In her study, subjects were asked to read a court transcript from a criminal case, to give their verdict in the case, and to…