chevron-down Created with Sketch Beta.

Criminal Justice Section Initiatives

We offer a wide array of programs designed to address the criminal justice system.

Initiatives
Initiative Image

Criminal Justice Standards

For fifty years, the ABA Criminal Justice Standards have guided policymakers and practitioners working in the criminal justice arena.

View the Standards
Initiative Image

ABA Resolutions on Criminal Justice

Policy initiatives of the ABA Criminal Justice Section, including ABA Resolutions on Criminal Justice.

Learn More
Initiative Image

Atrocity Crimes Initiative

Working with the ABA Criminal Justice Section to prevent genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, and to ensure perpetrators are held accountable.

Learn More
Initiative Image

Diversity and Inclusion Fellowship Program

This program provides opportunities for lawyers in under-represented groups to actively participate within the Criminal Justice Section and prepare them to take on leadership roles within the Section.

Learn More
Task Forces
Initiative Image

Prosecutorial Independence Task Force

The goal of the task force is to preserve and strengthen prosecutorial independence and enhance the American public’s understanding of the prosecutor’s critical role in maintaining the integrity of the criminal justice system.

Learn More
Initiative Image

ABA CJS Plea Bargaining Task Force

The task force closely examines the role of plea bargaining in our modern system of criminal justice.  Its goal is to develop both broad policy oriented goals for the criminal justice system and, where necessary, specific recommendations for changes in the way plea bargaining operates within the larger criminal justice environment.

Learn More
Initiative Image

Task Force on Public Defense Independence

The goal of the task force is to protect and strengthen independence and enhance the public’s understanding of the critical role public defense independence plays in ensuring a fair and just criminal legal system.

Learn More
Initiative Image

Women in White Collar Subcommittee

The mission of the subcommittee is to highlight the challenges facing women practitioners in the criminal legal system and the unfortunate trend of women leaving the profession; to provide recommendations to address the concerns specific to women in the criminal legal profession; and raise the influence and profile of women practitioners.

Learn More
Additional Section Initiatives
Initiative Image

Achieving an Impartial Jury: Removing Bias in Voir Dire and Deliberations

The ABA Criminal Justice Section, with co-sponsorship from other ABA entities embarked on a project that offers a methodical, research-based approach to increasing impartiality among jurors, attorneys, and judges.

Learn More
Initiative Image

Legal Education Police Practices Consortium

The Consortium aims to contribute to the national effort examining and addressing legal issues in policing and public safety, including conduct, oversight, and the evolving nature of police work. 

Learn More
Initiative Image

Racial Justice Improvement Project

The Racial Justice Improvement Project is designed to identify and reform policies and practices that produce racial disparities in local criminal justice systems across the country.

Learn More