| Legal Aid Societies and Offices of the Public Defender |
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| Most states have legal aid societies, which are non-profit organizations that provide free legal assistance to indigents in civil matters. States also have public defenders who provide free legal representation to low income persons in criminal, juvenile, mental health, and dependency cases. More... |
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| Uniform Acts and Model Acts |
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| The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws was created in 1892. The National Conference is composed of more than 300 Uniform Law Commissioners. The Commissioners are lawyers who are appointed from each state. The Commissioners draft uniform or model legislation that addresses problems that are common to all states. The National Conference finances its activities through funds appropriated by state legislatures. The goal of the National Conference is to encourage the adoption of laws that are consistent throughout the states.
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| Mandatory Arbitration Clauses |
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| Contracts often include arbitration clauses. Arbitration is a method of alternative dispute resolution. The arbitration process is less formal than a trial, and the dispute is resolved much more quickly than traditional litigation. Arbitration clauses require a dispute to be submitted to arbitration instead of filing a lawsuit. The arbitrator's decision is final and binding on the parties. Some legal commentators claim that mandatory arbitration clauses undermine consumer rights. This article discusses the impact of mandatory arbitration clauses on consumers. More... |
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| Quo Warranto |
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| A writ in quo warranto, which is Latin for "by what warrant," is an extraordinary legal remedy. It requires a person to show his/her authority for holding an office or challenges the wrongful exercise of powers. A common quo warranto claim is that a government or corporate officer was not validly elected to office or is exercising powers in excess of his/her authority. A state might bring a suit in quo warranto demanding a person or corporation to show the authority for exercising some franchise or privilege granted to it by the state.
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| Expert Witnesses in Civil Lawsuits |
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| An expert witness is a witness who has knowledge of a technical subject. Because of his or her education, training or experience, an expert witness's testimony will aid the trier of fact in finding the truth in a lawsuit. More... |
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