Habeas Corpus Litigation

Habeas Corpus Litigation primarily involves collateral challenges to an inmate's conviction and incarceration that involves claims that are unavailable or unknown to a defendant during the trial and appellate process. This class will examine evolution of the Great Writ as a vehicle for challenging the legality of a prisoner's detention. It will discuss the ways courts have expanded and contracted common law and statutory writs over time and look at the development of habeas corpus law in the United States as established through Supreme Court cases and state and federal legislative trends.