Silencing the Appellant's Voice: The Antitherapeutic Per Curiam Affirmance
Posted: 26 Jun 2001
Abstract
Appellate courts are increasingly deciding cases without issuing a formal opinion. The most frequent instance of this is the per curiam affirmance. While the per curiam affirmance can be justified on efficiency grounds, it may have antitherapeutic effects for the party who appealed. This article uses psychological theory to examine these antitherapeutic effects, and to propose a remedy: the use of a short therapeutic or speaking affirmance. In particular, the literature on the psychology of procedural justice and its application to this context is explored. The article applies the approach of therapeutic jurisprudence by seeking to identify the antitherapeutic consequences of this legal practice, and to make recommendations designed to avoid or minimize them. If followed, the recommendations made can help to provide a measure of healing for the appellant who has lost his or her appeal.
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