Standards Relating to Appeals and Collateral Review

• NCJ Number: 83579
• Author(s): M Moran
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 59 pages
• Grant Number(s): 76-JN-99-0018; 78-JN-AX-0002; 74-NI-99-0043; 75-NI-99-0101; 71-NI-99-0014; 72-NI-99-0032
• Agencies: OJJDP-Sponsored; American Bar Association

Annotation

These standards for juvenile appeals and collateral review focus on the nature of the appellate structure, reviewability, the right to counsel and records, procedures, stays of orders and release pending appeal, and collateral and supplementary proceedings.

Abstract

To effectuate the goals of an appeal, the standards provide for an appeal of right wherein the court may review conclusions of law and fact from both the adjudicatory and dispositional phases. The nature of this review is structured on the following principles: (1) the jurisdictional authority of the juvenile court to exert governmental power against a juvenile should be finalized as quickly as possible; (2) a dispositional order of the juvenile court should never be so final that it is not possible to inquire whether that disposition is still in the juvenile's best interest; (3) dispositional orders of the court should be monitored by the court to ensure that the system is moving toward its goals; and (4) appeals from juvenile court should be speedily processed and the status quo ordinarily maintained pending the appeal's result. Standards based on the first principle allow for an interlocutory appeal from a finding that jurisdiction exists over a juvenile. Standards based on the second and third principles allow modification of juvenile court orders in certain circumstances, require the court to monitor its orders which affect custody, and allow a party to petition the court to inquire into the adequacy of the system's delivery of services. In accordance with the fourth principle, the standards provide for preferential treatment of juvenile court appeals and suggest that in most cases, the positions of the parties should be maintained pending the appeal's results. A bibliography is not provided. (Author summary modified)