Legal Admissibility Research Articles

Image management and communication—A legal perspective

This paper outlines the legal issues that arise in the context of digital diagnostic image management and communication. At the heart of the study is the digital image which is manipulated, processed, communicated, stored compressed and archived, and which is difficult to ascertain from a legal point of view because of its intangible nature. At issue is, on the one hand, data protection and security and, on the other hand, legal problems as to the images' evidential force, procedural and legal admissibility and most important uncertainties about the liabilities of those involved in handling the digital image.

Legal Admissibility of Electronic Records as Evidence and Implications for Records Management

As civilization develops, both socially and technologically, the laws that govern human action must change accordingly. This paper examines the current legal debate over the nature of electronic records and their legal admissibility as evidence in light of past debates on the admissibility of microfilm, photocopies, and written documents themselves. The author sees contemporary judicial thinking as following the historical trend of relying on personal testimony and "dependable systems" to ensure documentary veracity and validity. The conclusion stresses the impact of the legal status of electronic records on records management programs and the need for records managers to be aware of the foundations of current legal thought.

Legal aspects of digital image management and communication.

This paper outlines the legal issues that arise in digital image management and communication systems (IMACS). At the heart of this study is the digital image which is manipulated, processed, communicated, stored, compressed and archived, and which is difficult to ascertain from a legal point of view because of its intangible nature. On the one hand, personal data protection and the patient's right to privacy need to be protected through a data protection and security policy. This is particularly important in view of the capacity of IMACS to integrate with other systems such as HIS and RIS, since the information generated by the totality of these systems offers a very complete picture of any patient. On the other hand, the evanescent nature of the digital image creates legal uncertainties as to questions of evidence, of procedural and legal admissibility and acceptability and of liability.

The use of optical storage technology for those business records which need to be retained for legal purposes

Organizations have to retain certain records to protect their interest under the law. English law is not specific about such record keeping and information and records managers have to make their own interpretations. Widespread use of information technology allows the proliferation of paper-based records which results in an increase in time and effort spent on retrieval. Some of the types of records which might need to be retained either under common law torts or to comply with legislation are outlined. There is a review of optical storage technology including details of indexing, advantages and disadvantages and applications. The problem of legal admissibility is discussed although future introduction of British Standards and use of optical storage technology in court by the Serious Fraud Office are noted. At the time of writing, continuing lack of standards for interchange of disks and difficulties with indexing combine to prevent wider use of optical storage although it is considered suitable for certain applications.

Jails Versus Mental Hospitals: The Milwaukee Approach to a Social Dilemma

The authors' previous national data statistical analysis revealed the existence of negative linear relationships between mental health admissions and jail census data. In view of the above, a study was made of the Milwaukee data using similar parameters in order to assess whether a correlation, positive or negative, exists between the national data and the Milwaukee data. The statistical analyses of Milwaukee data are at variance with the national findings. A moderately strong positive relationship between the number of persons booked in the Milwaukee County Jail and the admissions to the Milwaukee County Mental Health Complex (MCMHC) has been found. The existence of several moderately strong negative correlational relationships between legal and mental health admissions variables is demonstrated. Further analyses point out that there is in Milwaukee a positive relationship between the mental health system and, in particular, the Milwaukee County Forensic Unit and the jail-judiciary system, whereby mentally ill offenders, through a cooperative screening at booking, are promptly identified and referred for psychiatric care to the MCMHC. The authors suggest the Milwaukee system as a model for those cities that have not yet implemented a similar functional organization in dealing with the problem of the mentally ill in the United States city jails.

Electronic data interchange

As EDI becomes established, its success will mean that business and government organisations will become ever more operationally dependent on Information and Communications Technology (IACT) than hitherto. The ensuing proliferation of EDI networks creates problems for the certification of output from such systems for presentation as admissible evidence in a UK court of law. Trade transactions contracted over such computer and communications networks have the disadvantage of being ‘fleeting’ and therefore it could be difficult to produce an authenticated record of what has occurred between parties in the event of a dispute. In addition, as new legislation (such as the Computer Misuse Act 1990) demands higher standards of security from corporate network managers, the procedures, techniques and technologies of system access control, user authorisation and transaction verification will increasingly be under forensic scrutiny. This article drawn on research studies (the VERDICT and APPEAL Reports) carried out by CASTELL for the Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency (CCTA, HM Treasury) during 1987 and 1988 reviewing the UK position on legal admissibility, and assessing the ‘legal reliability’, of computer generated evidence. Preliminary guidelines drafted as the outcome of further work carried out for the CCTA's GOSIP EDI Task Force (the ‘EDILAW ONE’ Report) are presented.

The admissibility of expert testimony regarding malingering and deception

AbstractThis article discusses the legal admissibility of expert testimony and the ability of mental health professionals to detect malingering and deception among defendants. A legal analysis of the admissibility of expert testimony regarding malingering and deception in formal legal proceedings is presented. Some guidelines are provided to help mental health professionals and attorneys determine the admissibility of evidence they intend to introduce. Although psychologists and psychiatrists currently have a limited ability to identify accurately malingering and deception, expert testimony about the genuineness of a defendant's mental illness is likely to be held admissible for both practical and evidentiary reasons. In contrast, evidence about a witness' credibility is rarely admissible. In addition, psychologists are ethically obliged to recognize their limitations in making representations about their skills.

The admissibility and authentication of computer evidence - a confusion of issues

Organizations have to retain certain records to protect their interest under the law. English law is not specific about such record keeping and information and records managers have to make their own interpretations. Widespread use of information technology allows the proliferation of paper-based records which results in an increase in time and effort spent on retrieval. Some of the types of records which might need to be retained either under common law torts or to comply with legislation are outlined. There is a review of optical storage technology including details of indexing, advantages and disadvantages and applications. The problem of legal admissibility is discussed although future introduction of British Standards and use of optical storage technology in court by the Serious Fraud Office are noted. At the time of writing, continuing lack of standards for interchange of disks and difficulties with indexing combine to prevent wider use of optical storage although it is considered suitable for certain applications.

Close encounters of the witness kind: children's memory for a simulated health inspection.

A total of 128 children from each of two age groups (6-7 years and 10-11 years) took part individually in a simulated health check procedure. This involved direct confrontation between the child and an adult stranger in which the child was touched and an article of clothing (shoes) removed. One week later children took part in a series of tests which examined their testimony of the events in which they participated. Older children were superior to younger on both free and prompted recall of event and appearance information and made fewer errors, both relatively and absolutely, on recall of appearance but not events. The two age groups did not differ in their competence in the construction of Photofit pictures and showed no difference in performance on identification from a photographic array, irrespective of whether the adult was present or absent. The implications of these findings for the current debate over the legal admissibility of children's evidence are discussed.

A Legal and Behavioral Science Analysis of Statutory Guidelines for Children's Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services: The Florida Case

Certain issues relating to children's mental health services were recently addressed in Florida, including: the legal adversarial relationship between parent and child; guardian ad litem; child participation in legal admissions processes; child consent to outpatient counseling; appropriate placements; expert professional opinion; and costs. Available research suggests that (1) children 15 years of age and older should be as presumably capable of consenting to mental health treatment as adults; (2) due process requirements for psychiatric hospitalization of children do not necessarily harm the family system; and (3) inpatient treatment of children and adolescents is effective and preferred for a number of the more severe disorders, but outpatient treatment is indicated for the less severe and more circumscribed disorders. The statutory schemes of the Mental Health Law Project and the Virginia Task Force are both preferable to Florida's recommended reform.

Computer evidence

As EDI becomes established, its success will mean that business and government organisations will become ever more operationally dependent on Information and Communications Technology (IACT) than hitherto. The ensuing proliferation of EDI networks creates problems for the certification of output from such systems for presentation as admissible evidence in a UK court of law. Trade transactions contracted over such computer and communications networks have the disadvantage of being ‘fleeting’ and therefore it could be difficult to produce an authenticated record of what has occurred between parties in the event of a dispute. In addition, as new legislation (such as the Computer Misuse Act 1990) demands higher standards of security from corporate network managers, the procedures, techniques and technologies of system access control, user authorisation and transaction verification will increasingly be under forensic scrutiny. This article drawn on research studies (the VERDICT and APPEAL Reports) carried out by CASTELL for the Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency (CCTA, HM Treasury) during 1987 and 1988 reviewing the UK position on legal admissibility, and assessing the ‘legal reliability’, of computer generated evidence. Preliminary guidelines drafted as the outcome of further work carried out for the CCTA's GOSIP EDI Task Force (the ‘EDILAW ONE’ Report) are presented.

Polygraphs: Erosion of the privacy right

The polygraph is a machine which invades previously private regions in the human being. Its operation is often viewed simplistically and lacking in danger. Such naivete is the subject of this comment. The paper considers the mechanics of polygraph operation, and its theoretical basis; the legal admissibility of the polygraph in a variety of settings, and lastly the impact the polygraph has upon our private lives. Clearly, the polygraph intrudes on the private regions of each individual, and this frightening fact is cause enough to consider the human, social and constitutional implications of its use. The project considers the reliability factor of the polygraph and its questionable use in personnel and business settings; its use in disciplinary procedures and labor arbitration, as well as reviews its place in judicial process and criminal review. Most critically the paper attempts to arrive at a constitutional basis for restrictions on its use in the private sector. Ingenious arguments have been made by opponents of the polygraph, and this paper reviews the substance and content of these constitutional arguments.

Correlates of Mental Hospital Admission Status

The legal admission status (voluntary v. involuntary) of patients admitted to a state mental hospital was compared with the patients' willingness to enter the hospital, social resources, dangerousness, and management within the hospital. The legal admission status was found to be strongly associated with a willingness to enter, but there is much continued resistance and coercion associated with hospital admission. Indices of social power were not related to legal admission status with the exception that blacks were disproportionately admitted involuntarily.The only significant finding about legal status and judgments of dangerousness was that people judged to be dangerous to self were more frequently admitted as voluntary. Legal status was not significantly related to time prior to gaining ground privileges or discharge from the hospital.

Legal admissibility of the polygraph : edited and compiled by Norman Ansley Charles C. Thomas (301–327 East Lawrence Avenue, Springfield, Illinois 62703), 1975, 344 pp., hardcover—$33.75

Legal admissibility of the polygraph : edited and compiled by Norman Ansley Charles C. Thomas (301–327 East Lawrence Avenue, Springfield, Illinois 62703), 1975, 344 pp., hardcover—$33.75

New Light on John Marshall's Legal Education and Admission to the Bar

New Light on John Marshall's Legal Education and Admission to the Bar

Education for the Bar in the United States

There is no country in which it is as important that the lawyers should be well educated for their profession, as it is in the United States. Here they hold a political position. They are a recognized part of the machinery of government. All are officers of courts that have the acknowledged power of interpreting constitutions and statutes, which may be invoked as grounds of action or defence in pending litigation, and of holding statutes inconsistent with a constitution so interpreted to be void. Other nations may confer on the judiciary a similar authority in terms, but nowhere else is the exertion of such authority common and accepted by all as conclusive. In the last resort, questions of constitutional law and statutory construction will be decided in a court, manned exclusively by those who have been trained for the bar, after hearing argument from lawyers who have been educated in the same manner.The constitution of the American Bar Association has a standing committee on “Legal education and admission to the bar.” Their reports, from time to time, have been influential in securing action which, since the foundation of the association in 1878, has served to lengthen the general term of study required for the admission to the bar, to broaden the field of study, and to transfer the general place of study from a lawyer's office to a law school.

Legal Education and Admission to the Bar in the Southern States

Legal Education and Admission to the Bar in the Southern States

Legal Education and Admission to the Bar in the Southern States

Legal Education and Admission to the Bar in the Southern States

Animal Rights

MR. ROMANES's parallel is as unsound as amusing. If a physiologist claimed to vivisect his children “on the plea that it was for this purpose that he had begotten them,” we should tell him that the legal admission of such pleas would undermine human society. But in the killing of pigs for food no undermining of human society is involved. Moreover, we know that men breed pigs only to kill them, but that men breed children from entirely different motives; we should answer the physiologist that his plea was impossible of proof, that all human experience negatived its probability, and that consequently it could not be admitted to overrule his children's presumptive right of life.