Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Public Policy and Administration

Advisor

Vincent E. Adejumo

Abstract

The Judiciary Act of 1789 permits parties to plead and manage their cases personally or by a defense counsel. The legal provision laid the foundation for self-representation guidelines adopted by the courts. Despite self-representation becoming widely accepted in the legal system, there is limited understanding of the barriers faced by litigants. John Rawls’ theory of Justice written in 1971 guided an in-depth analysis of these experiences. The theory states that with the subject of justice things are just or unjust. With the need to answer the research questions that sought to explore the lived experiences of self-represented litigants, attorneys, and judges, the qualitative study relied on a sample of 5 judges, 5 attorneys, and 25 self-represented litigants. In-depth interviews offered a reliable approach of collecting the data using thematic analysis method. The study found structural, financial, political, and doctrinal barriers affected self-represented litigation. These barriers included difficulty in accessing legal information and resources, cost of litigation, political interferences, personal issues (emotions), inequality of arms, and limited knowledge of the legal system. Recommendations include improving access to legal information, collaboration among the stakeholders in the justice system, and streamlining training programs to ensure judicial officers assist self-represented litigants to access justice. With the increasing usage of self-representation litigation in the current justice system, positive social change may result from improving accessibility to the legal system which benefits low-income self-represented litigants who cannot traditionally afford professional counsel to plead and manage their cases.

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