Pennsylvania Juvenile Defenders: Defender Tools

Juvenile Defender Tools and Forms for Legal Representation

The forms below are a sampling of those available within the ABA Juvenile Defender Notebooks: A Case Preparation System Juvenile Defenders. There are more forms and case preparation materials and explanation within the notebooks. It is recommended that Defenders refer to the complete notebooks prior to handling a delinquency or status offense case. All forms listed below are in PDF format.

Juvenile Defender Delinquency Notebook: A Case Preparation System for New Juvenile Defenders

Compiled and Edited by: Barbara Butterworth, Will Rhee, and Mary Ann Scali

A Publication of the: Juvenile Justice Center, Criminal Justice Section, American Bar Association, September 2000

INTRODUCTION

"In each jurisdiction, lawyers practicing before the juvenile court should actively seek improvement in the administration of juvenile justice and the provision of resources for the treatment of persons subject to the jurisdiction of the juvenile court."

IJA-ABA Juvenile Justice Standards, Standards Relating to Counsel for Private Parties, Standard 1.7

In accordance with its mission of improving access to counsel and quality of representation, the National Juvenile Defender Center has published this Juvenile Defender Delinquency Notebook as a tool for new and aspiring juvenile defenders.

What is the Juvenile Defender Delinquency Notebook?

The Juvenile Defender Delinquency Notebook is a case management and preparation system designed to assist new juvenile defenders in every phase of delinquency representation. It is intended to be used during actual court proceedings and direct representation. The Delinquency Notebook includes concise law and procedure checklists; trial preparation and strategy forms; model forms and motions; and summaries of key trial documents. Each chapter begins with a text box entitled "Helpful points to consider before your first case" that summarizes helpful information a new juvenile defender should know before tackling each phase of his or her client's case. All of the model forms have been placed in Chapter 14 for easy access and reference.

Why a Delinquency Notebook?

Seasoned juvenile defenders have long relied upon notebooks to prepare for trial. This particular notebook is intended for less experienced defenders. An up-to-date trial notebook can provide the juvenile defender with many benefits:

A step-by-step guide to defending a juvenile case (though a new defender must tailor the notebook to her own jurisdiction).
Easy access to critical information so that a defender can quickly respond to objections, questions from the bench, and any other unexpected contingencies.
Comprehensive and systematic checklists to ensure that a defender does not overlook an important task inside or outside the courtroom.
A way for experienced juvenile defenders to review the work of less experienced juvenile defenders.
A clear and concise record of your case that facilitates transfer of the case between defenders.
A comprehensive case study that can be used to train other defenders.
A way to coordinate the members of your defense team.

The Notebooks

Select a notebook to view or print. Notebooks are offered as pdf files and are both approximately 2 MB in size.

Notebook Part I

Introduction
Overview of the Juvenile Justice System
Establishing and Maintaining an Attorney-Client Relationship
Discovery & Investigation
Developing a Defense
Pre-Trial Proceedings
Plea Bargaining
Trial/Adjudication
Disposition: "Elements of a Juvenile Defendant's Dispositional Plan"
Post-Trial
Transfer of Jurisdiction
Related Proceedings
Professional Responsibility and Standards

Notebook Part II

Forms
Contacts and Resources
Endnotes

Pennsylvania Juvenile Defenders

Northeast Regional Defender Center

Helpful Links

State and Local Defender Sites

Delaware

New Jersey

New York

Pennsylvania