Access To Justice In U.S. At Third-World Levels, Says Survey

[divideandconquer]

Access To Justice In U.S. At Third-World Levels, Says Survey

Posted: 10-14-10 09:01 AM

Dan Froomkin



Why haven't more Americans successfully sued the banks that lured them into fraudulent mortgages, then foreclosed on them without the required paperwork?

It could be because the civil justice system in this country is essentially inaccessible to many Americans -- and when it does get accessed, is tilted toward the wealthy and moneyed interests.

That's certainly consistent with the finding of a world-wide survey unveiled Thursday morning that ranks the United States lowest among 11 developed nations when it comes to providing access to justice to its citizens -- and lower than some third-world nations in some categories.

Particularly when it comes to access to and affordability of legal counsel in civil disputes, the U.S. ranks 20 out of the 35 nations surveyed, below not only developed nations but also such countries as Mexico, Croatia and the Dominican Republic.

The results are from the World Justice Project's new "Rule of Law Index", which assesses how laws are implemented and enforced in practice around the globe. Countries are rated on such factors as whether government officials are accountable, whether legal institutions protect fundamental rights, and how ordinary people fare in the system. The index will expand from 35 countries to 70 next year.
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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/14/access-to-justice-in-us-a_n_762355.html

I remember Molly Ivans saying America was the world's richest third world nation.

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. And now we are not even the richest any more.

Waaaahhhhhhhhh