In 2016, authors Anthony G. Amsterdam and Randy Hertz released the Sixth Edition of the Trial Manual for the Defense of Criminal Cases, an update of the widely used guide for handling criminal court cases. The Manual, last published in 1988, is designed as a how-to-do-it exposition for the general practitioner of the law and practice of criminal defense. It gives the lawyer who is relatively inexperienced in criminal proceedings a compact guide through the stages of a criminal case, from arrest and investigation to appeal. It identifies critical points in the proceedings, warns of rights to be asserted and interests to be protected at each stage, describes the practices and procedures necessary or useful for the assertion of those rights and the protections of those interests, and, in both narrative and checklist form, suggests steps to be taken or considered by defense counsel at the various stages.
Professors Amsterdam and Hertz have updated the Sixth Edition with their 2019 Supplement. Public defenders may request a free electronic copy of the Manual and 2018 Supplement. Please email communications@ali.org to request the free PDF Volumes.
From the authors:
The primary goal of the Manual has always been – and continues to be – to serve as a resource for criminal defense lawyers at the trial level. It covers the information a defense attorney has to know, and the strategic factors s/he should consider, at each of the stages of the criminal trial process. It is organized for easy access by practitioners who need ideas and information quickly in order to jump-start their work at any given stage.
A Brief History
In 1967, A Trial Manual for the Defense of Criminal Cases was published by the ALI-ABA Joint Committee on Continuing Legal Education. The product of the combined effort of the ALI-ABA Joint Committee, the American College of Trial Lawyers, and the National Legal Aid and Defendant Association, the Manual was designed for use in Course of Study to be conducted throughout the country and as a working document for lawyers involved in the defense of persons accused of crime.
Authored by Anthony G. Amsterdam, Bernard L. Segal, and Martin K. Miller, the Manual consisted of three parts. The first was an Outline of the Criminal Defense Process; the second was a treatise-like discussion of the substantive content of the Outline titled ‘Guidelines for Criminal Defense;’ the third was a Selected Bibliography of Criminal Procedure, keyed directly to the Outline.
It was introduced in loose-leaf form to facilitate (1) local annotating and (2) periodic updating to keep it current. The planned use of the publication was for local legal educational organizations and bar associations to interfoliate local annotations covering both substantive and procedural local law, and for their cosponsorship of Courses of Study based on the Manual.
The American Law Institute is proud to work with authors Amsterdam and Hertz on the continued publication of this widely relied upon work, and will continue to provide free access to public defenders who may not otherwise be able to afford access to yearly updates.