ABA adopts new policies on prosecutorial standards, law school accreditation, Pakistan

During its one-day Feb. 11 session during the ABA Midyear Meeting, the House of Delegates adopted an array of new policies critical to the legal profession and at the forefront of much public policy debate.

On the issue of law school accreditation, the House concurred with the recommendation of the Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar regarding interpretation of 301-6, providing guidance to law schools on compliance with the standard requiring that they maintain an educational program that “prepares its students for admission to the bar.”

Earlier in the day, the House approved recommendation 105B, concerning prosecutorial conduct. Specifically, the recommendation calls for prompt disclosure when a prosecutor becomes aware of “new, credible and material evidence creating a reasonable likelihood that a convicted defendant did not commit an offense… ”

The ABA also adopted, by a unanimous vote, a late-filed recommendation that expresses solidarity with the Pakistani bar and bench, calling for the immediate release of detained judges and lawyers in Pakistan.

Among the additional recommendations that were adopted by the House of Delegates include ones that:

• Urge each state and the District of Columbia to assign the redistricting process for congressional and legislative districts to an independent commission;
• Urge governments, in cooperation with state and local pro bono and legal aid programs, to establish programs to assist or provide legal representation for victims of identity theft;
• Encourage governments at all levels to “vigorously prosecute cases of elder abuse, neglect and financial exploitation;”
• Call for the implementation of sentencing guidelines that both protect public safety and recognize the mitigating considerations of age and maturity of youthful offenders;
• Support the issuance of federal regulations that codify the Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement National Detention Standards, and encourages increased oversight of the implementation of those standards;
• Support increased public understanding of the “Religion Clauses” of the U.S. Constitution as they apply in the public elementary and secondary schools.

The 555-member House of Delegates met at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles during the ABA Midyear Meeting.

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