Abstract
The Sixth Amendment guarantees criminal defendants effective assistance of counsel. The criminal justice system implements this guarantee by appointing counsel for indigent defendants and then reviewing their performance after the fact, on appeal or habeas corpus. Strickland v. Washington's two-pronged test of effectiveness asks first whether defense counsel's "performance fell below an objective standard of reasonableness." Second, Strickland requires affirmative proof that an error was prejudicial. This prong requires defendants to prove a reasonable probability that the error affected the outcome of the trial or penalty hearing.
Recommended Citation
Bibas, Stephanos
(2004)
"The Psychology of Hindsight and After-the-Fact Review of Ineffective Assistance of Counsel,"
Utah Law Review: Vol. 2004:
No.
1, Article 1.
Available at:
https://dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol2004/iss1/1