Abuse of Process

Abstract

Legal procedure does not enjoy great popularity. The layman resents it, since it prevents him from conducting his case by himself and forces him to resort to professional advocates. But even the jurist's attitudes to procedure is far from positive: he sees it as a mere “adjective” branch of the law that detracts from the importance of “substantive” law. Moreover, it has often emerged that the labyrinth of procedure does not lead to the triumph of the substantive law, but rather to the perversion of justice. A person expert in procedure has, as it were, wide scope in which to prevent, or, at least to distort, the revelation of the truth.From time to time, a judge may be heard speaking out against such abuse of legal process, but mostly, his is a voice crying out in the wilderness.