Paralegals

Paralegals, also called legal assistants, perform substantive legal work under the supervision of an attorney. They perform a variety of duties that in the past were handled by attorneys. The attorney has ultimate responsibility for any legal work, and paralegals are not allowed to engage in the practice of law. They cannot give legal advice or present cases in court.

Jury Consultants

The jury serves a vital function in the American legal system. The jury is the trier of fact in a civil jury trial. The jury's role is to weigh the evidence presented by both sides and reach a verdict. The United States Constitution guarantees a right to trial by jury in civil and criminal cases. The jury must be fair or impartial. The jury pool, the group of individuals from which a particular jury is selected, has to be representative of the community. Voir dire is the process of interviewing potential jurors to determine who will sit on the jury. The purpose of voir dire is to identify and remove individuals who cannot be fair and impartial. It is becoming more and more common for attorneys to hire jury consultants to assist in the selection of jurors, especially for high-profile cases.

Indian Tribal Courts

Congress has plenary or complete authority over Indian affairs. This means that Congress has unlimited discretion to regulate affairs on an Indian reservation. Under federal law, Indian nations are quasi-sovereign; that is, they have power in some areas but not in others. For example, Indian nations can operate tribal governments and manage their own property and resources. However, they cannot conduct foreign relations or prosecute non-Indians who commit crimes on reservations. Indian nations have adopted tribal codes, which usually combine traditional law with state law and federal law.

Judicial Accountability

Judges take an oath of office to follow and apply the law faithfully. In certain cases, judges find themselves in a dilemma--that of faithfully applying a law that conflicts with the judge's own beliefs, principles, or sense of justice. In addition to taking an oath to uphold the law, judicial ethics and judicial precedent require a judge to follow prior case law on matters that have been decided by higher courts.

Housing Courts

Housing courts are specialized courts that handle landlord-tenant cases. The New York City Housing Court handles only residential landlord-tenant cases; another court division handles commercial landlord-tenant cases. Housing courts in Minnesota handle civil and criminal cases related to residential rental housing. The Boston Housing Court handles landlord-tenant disputes, evictions, and housing code violations. This article covers the most common types of cases filed in housing court.