NCJ Number
102419
Date Published
1986
Length
67 pages
Annotation
Two studies compare the use of Federal and State courts for public interest litigation and habeas corpus cases.
Abstract
In examining 'public interest' litigation, cases were defined as those brought by self-declared public interest groups certified as such for tax purposes. To examine whether the potential for publicity determined a public interest organization's choice of a court forum, the study sent questionnaires to 112 organizations and surveyed news coverage. Findings indicate that publicity opportunities do not motivate public interest organizations to bring their cases to Federal rather than State courts. Approximately 1,400 public interest cases were reviewed to determine patterns of State and Federal court selection for hearing the cases. Environmental groups tended to do worse in State courts than Federal courts and so avoided State courts more than other public interest groups. More State cases pertained to individual claims. In the second study, data on Federal habeas corpus filings were obtained for district court filings between 1979 and 1982. Data on State habeas corpus cases were obtained for 1979 and 1981 in New York, Illinois, Alabama, and Texas. There was considerable variation among habeas corpus rulings in Federal courts, often more than among State courts in the same geographic region. Some of this variation was due to the judges' personal backgrounds. Tabular data and notes.