ABSTRACT
My goal in this chapter is to identify and evaluate the potential impact of the research findings reviewed in the 22 chapters of this volume on the justice system, particularly the criminal justice system. My comments are from the perspective of a trial lawyer practicing within a common-law justice system. The plan of this chapter is first to give a thumbnail sketch of the criminal justice system, and then to identify the implications of the findings reported in this volume for the justice system. It should be noted that, notwithstanding the fact that all common-law jurisdictions adopted the common-law system of England at the time of colonization, since that time the common-law system in the various jurisdictions has developed in response to the specific demands and values of those jurisdictions, for example, the manner in which judges are appointed and jurors are selected in the United States is very different from the way it is done in England, Australia, or New Zealand.
