Postconviction Remedies

The following is the complete Table of Contents with links to the "black letter" standards approved by the American Bar Association's House of Delegates in August 1978. The standards are published along with commentary as Chapter 22 in ABA Standards for Criminal Justice: Volume IV, 2nd Edition, ©1980, by the American Bar Association. A 1986 supplement contains updated commentary.

Copyright by the American Bar Association. This work (Criminal Justice Standards) may be used for non-profit educational and training purposes and legal reform (legislative, judicial, and executive) without written permission but with a citation to this source.  Some specific Standards can be purchased in book format.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART I. GENERAL PRINCIPLES

Standard 22-1.1   Single, comprehensive postconviction remedy
Standard 22-1.2   Characterization of the proceeding
Standard 22-1.3   Proper parties; legal representative of the respondent
Standard 22-1.4   Jurisdiction and venue; assignment of judges

PART II. SCOPE OF POSTCONVICTION PROCEDURE

Standard 22-2.1   Grounds for relief encompassed
Standard 22-2.2   Prematurity of applications for postconviction relief; postponed appeals
Standard 22-2.3   Custody requirement
Standard 22-2.4   Statute of limitations; abuse of process; stale claims

PART III. THE APPLICATION: PREPARATION, FILING, AND SERVICE

Standard 22-3.1   Preparation of applications for relief; resources available to applicants
Standard 22-3.2   Standardized application forms
Standard 22-3.3   Applications with false allegations; verification requirement
Standard 22-3.4   Supporting affidavits; sources of evidence to prove factual allegations
Standard 22-3.5   Filing fees; potential liability for costs

PART IV. PROCESSING APPLICATIONS

Standard 22-4.1   Judicial responsibility for dispositions; magistrates and court staff
Standard 22-4.2   Preliminary judicial consideration of an application before a responsive pleading
Standard 22-4.3   Appointment of counsel
Standard 22-4.4   Responsive pleading; calendar priority; bail; stay of execution; judgment on the pleadings
Standard 22-4.5   Discovery; summary disposition on expanded record without plenary evidentiary hearing
Standard 22-4.6   Plenary evidentiary hearing; presence of applicant; evidence and burden of proof; findings of fact
Standard 22-4.7   Dispositive orders; trial court opinions

PART V. APPELLATE REVIEW

Standard 22-5.1   Appellate court jurisdiction; right to appeal
Standard 22-5.2   Initiating appeals; release from custody pending appeal
Standard 22-5.3   Processing appeals

PART VI. FINALITY OF JUDGMENTS

Standard 22-6.1   Finality of the judgment of conviction and sentence
Standard 22-6.2   Finality of a judgment in a postconviction proceeding; repetitive applications
Standard 22-6.3   Renewal of prosecution against a successful postconviction applicant

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