Discussion Forum 1: US Legal System on Societal Cohesion

The United States' legal system ought to protect people to promote societal cohesion, but this objective cannot be attained when people with 'best' lawyers carry the day. Adversarial systems are those aiming to service the rich at the expense of the poor in a community. For example, through this legal system, affluent people in a society have a chance to 'buy' their freedom through legal advisors who fight to make a criminal allegation to disappear. However, Shapiro (2000) investigate the fairness of judicial processes and concludes that, on successful accomplishment of shielding the rich, the receiving end comprises the vulnerable and needy who do have strong legal representation or connections. For the U.S. to successfully balance between individual and societal rights and needs, it needs a system that is mutually beneficial for 'well-connected' person and those who do not have financial or political influence in the country.

An adversarial system of justice does not offer equal access to justice for poor people. Socioeconomic classes play a significant role in how people are arrested and prosecuted; the rich seem to have some form of immunity, which makes...