Judging ineffective assistance of counsel

Back when I covered the Supreme Court for the Los Angeles Daily Journal, I always found it fascinating covering claims of ineffective assistance of counsel made against criminal defense lawyers by former clients. In particular, I was intrigued by what it felt to be one of those lawyers, especially when the case ends up at the high court. I covered a few cases in which the accused lawyer ended up being vindicated by the justices. Quite a roller coaster ride of emotions for the lawyers involved.

It’s now the subject of a feature I’ve written for California Lawyer magazine that is out this month. You can read it here: