Kolker v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 state decisions

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 6 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Although a criminal defendant has a presumptive right under the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution to counsel of his own choosing, "that presumption may be overcome not only by a demonstration of actual conflict but by a showing of a serious potential for conflict." Wheat v. United States, 486 U.S. 153, 164 , 108 S.Ct. 1692, 1700 , 100 L.Ed.2d 140, 152 (1988). In applying Wheat to a case similar to this one, the Eleventh Circuit held that "[t]he need for fair, efficient, and orderly administration of justice overcomes the right to counsel of choice where an attorney has an actual conflict of interest, such as when he has previously represented a person who will be called as a witness against a current client at a criminal trial." United States v. Ross, 33 F.3d 1507, 1523 (11th Cir.1994). An attorney's previous relationship with a client who has become a witness for the government and plans to testify against the attorney's current client presents a dilemma of divided loyalty. It would be improper for the attorney to use privileged communications from the former client in cross-examination of that former client; the conflict could also "deter the defense attorney from intense probing of the witness on cross-examination to protect privileged communications with the former client." Ross, 33 F.3d at 1523 . [footnote omitted]”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 829 So. 2d 959 - Cotto v. State

2. “Even though this matter is in the pretrial stages and an actual conflict may yet not be apparent, the case is rife with the potential for such conflict. “In the murkier pre-trial context when relationships between parties are seen through a glass, darkly,” the court is accorded broad discretion in determining whether the potential for conflict exists.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Smith v. State

3. “[t]he need for fair, efficient, and orderly administration of justice overcomes the right to counsel of choice where an attorney has an actual conflict of interest, such as when he has previously represented a person who will be called as a witness against a current client at a criminal trial.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 829 So. 2d 959 - Cotto v. State