WASHINGTON, Aug. 16, 2011 – Defendants asserting a claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel should have a right to effective assistance of counsel at the first state court proceeding in which they can bring that claim, the American Bar Association told the U.S. Supreme Court in its amicus curiae brief in the case of Martinez v. Ryan.

The brief urges the Supreme Court to reverse a lower court ruling, and find that counsel representing a defendant at the post-conviction stage should provide the same quality of representation as is constitutionally required of counsel at trial.

The ABA has a long history of promoting the right to effective representation during the criminal process, and asserts that recognition of a right to effective assistance of counsel at the post-conviction stage “is paramount if state and federal post-conviction proceedings are to remain viable forums for enforcing a defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to effective trial counsel.”

The brief cites ABA Criminal Justice Standards in the filing.  The entire brief is available here.

With nearly 400,000 members, the American Bar Association is the world’s largest voluntary professional membership organization. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law.

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