The Section hosted the Thirteenth CJS Fall Institute and Meetings on November 16–22, 2020, but like many meetings in 2020, they were converted to virtual meetings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Section hosted ten plenary and breakout sessions over the course of the Institute on November 19–20, 2020, covering a range of topics within the theme “Advancing 21st Century Criminal Justice—Discovering the Wounds of a Tainted Truth.” The goal of this theme was to discover and heal the wounds of racism and injustice within the criminal legal system.
May 01, 2021 Section News
Fall Institute and Meetings
Kyo Suh
Committee meetings were hosted virtually beginning on Monday of that week. On Thursday, the CLE programming began with a keynote address from Carlton Waterhouse, J.D., Ph.D. and was followed by breakout sessions addressing race and gender issues in addition to prosecutor reforms, de-incarceration and training the next generation of criminal justice leaders. Thursday concluded with the White Collar Crime Town Hall, which discussed DOJ, SEC and CFC enforcement priorities in the coming year.
On Friday, the programming began with Virtual CJS 2020 Awards Luncheon featuring the keynote speech from Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey and recognized the 2020 CJS Award Recipients. A new award category created in 2020, the Albert Krieger Champion of Liberty Award, named after the famed defense lawyer and former CJS Chair (2002–2003), was awarded for the first time.
The Friday programming continued with two plenary sessions “Rule of Law: Future of Criminal Justice” and “Confronting Our History: The Role of Race in the Criminal Legal System”. The programming then concluded with a virtual reception. The CJS Council met on November 21–22. The CJS Fall Institute programs can be viewed at the CJS YouTube channel.
The Criminal Justice Practice-Ready Clinic
In November 2020, the Section launched the Criminal Justice Practice-Ready Clinic, which was created to provide young lawyers and current law school students with opportunities to learn and strengthen key skills necessary to build successful criminal justice practice. This clinic was designed to respond to the professional development gap caused by employers cancelling internship programs and pausing entry-level hiring due to the impacts of COVID-19.
Clinic participation required attending live and recorded workshops and training sessions essential to practice areas including client services, interviews, legal writing, oral advocacy, fact investigation, developing case strategy, motions practice and more. The Clinic provided training, coaching, and mentoring from criminal justice leaders. Clinic participants also gained access to the Criminal Justice Practice-Ready Career Portal, which provided opportunities to search job openings and connect with recruiters.
Clinic participants had the option to choose between two learning tracks: track one geared towards law students and recent graduates with no-to-minimal experience and track two geared towards young lawyers with some post-graduate experience, looking for additional learning opportunities. All participants were required to complete one mentorship session and two work projects in addition to their required and elective course requirements.
The Young Lawyer Committee helped construct the outline and requirements for the Clinic. Members and leaders of the Prosecution Function and Defense Function Committees, in addition to the Racial Justice, Diversity and Inclusion, Corrections, CLE Board, and White Collar Crime Committees, served as coaches and instructors for the sessions.
Upcoming Events
- August 5–8, ABA/CJS Annual Meeting (Toronto, Canada)
- September 8–10, Southeastern White Collar Crime Institute (Braselton, GA)
- October 11–12, 10th Annual London White Collar Crime Institute (London, UK)
- October 27–29, 35th National Institute on White Collar Crime (Miami, FL)
For the complete list of CJS events, see ambar.org/cjsevents.
Recent Publications
Street Legal: A Guide to Pre-trial Criminal Procedure for Police, Prosecutors, and Defenders, Second Edition, By Ken Wallentine
This practical, comprehensive guide on criminal procedure is a must-read for police investigators, defense attorneys and prosecutors, and any lawyer who needs a quick reference and reliable answer to a pre-trial criminal procedure question. Author Ken Wallentine, former prosecutor, investigator, and police chief explains criminal procedure basics and nuances in a practical, straightforward language.
For information on CJS books, see ambar.org/cjsbooks.