I haven’t been following the Phil Spector trial all that closely because I really don’t care enough too. However, I noticed that the trial has been ongoing since April. We were talking about it at work and someone mentioned that trials there routinely take ages. Why? Where I am, they don’t take that long. The John Allen Muhammed trial only took a month and I really haven’t heard of any trials here that take so long.
Can any California dopers tell me why trials run so long? Are the Phil Spector trial and the OJ case aberrations? How long does a civil trial last?
Exactly. My straight job is as a paralegal in California and I can attest that lawyers, contrary to my original stereotype of the profession, are far more disorganized and slower than I’d assumed. Deadlines are extended and forgotten, motions of all flavors must be filed, opposed, amended, and supplemented. Once a trial date is set and both parties appear, trials are usually shorter than Specter’s. But, as we remember from OJ, a rich Defendant with high priced lawyers are essentially just trying to cast doubt on the prosecution not prove innocence. The longer the trial drags out, the more kindling they can throw on that fire.
That’s pretty much what every defense attorney is trying to do. The defense has no burden of proof in a criminal trial. The prosecution is required to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Right—the reason for bringing up OJ (beyond his recent arrest) was that he, like Specter, had a much larger fund from which to draw legal payments. Your typical almost-certainly-guilty defendant cannot afford thousands a day over the course of multiple months.
What is the timeline for a civil trial? I know where I am in Virginia, the local courts will set a trial for a period within one year of filing to keep things from dragging on.
I agree that lawyers tend to be less organized than most people would think. They also tend to procrastinate and leave things for the last minute. If the deadline for filing the witness and exhibit lists is 5:00 on the 10th day for trial, that thing will be filed at 4:40 that day.
I guess that I’m a little more surprised that the judge doesn’t take a more active hand to move things along. I’ve seen judges here tell someone to cut to the chase and even take over the line of questioning from the attorney in a bench trial. Even in jury trials, they’ll get testy and move things along.
I’m currently at a Plaintiff’s side civil firm and we have cases that have been filed for at least 3 years and still have no trial dates. A close friend of mine who took the bar and practices in Texas, however, notes that all aspects of civil litigation move must faster there. Most of his trial (product liability stuff, fyi) don’t last a week.
That, my friend, is the same in California as it is in Virginnie.
And I’ve seen it too. But, like you intimated: that’s on a judge by judge basis. I’ve seen judges who do actively try and rush things along throughout the entire process and others who seem content to let cases dawdle along for years.