Law Consultancy firm: Phoenix Consultants - Essay Example

? Law Consultancy firm Part One: Skills Assessment Paper Introduction Phoenix Consultantsis a law firm that offers consultancy services on legal issues and affairs. The Firm is located outside The Federal Police Headquarters and directly opposite to The Federal Courts. Partners and a Summary of their skills Managing Director: Name 1 The managing director of Phoenix Consultants has a Bachelors degree in Criminal Justice Administration from Phoenix University. He has attended various seminars and trainings in Criminal Justice procedures. For instance, in 2011, Mr. 1 attended the International Conference on Criminal Justice held in Washington DC. The conference discussed among other issues, the emergence of new kinds of crime, such as cyber crimes, espionage crimes, terrorism crimes, etc. Mr. 1 is a widely experienced and learned man in the field of Criminal Justice. The managing director attended lectures on means and ways of fighting crimes and managing suspects. In Canada, 2011, he attended a one month lecture on effective ways of fighting crime. The lectures were organized by the International Police (Interpol) and financed by the American Government. The managing director is knowledgeable and an expert on Emerging Trends in the Criminal Justice System. He is highly knowledgeable on new systems of the Criminal Justice System and thus he can predict the future trends of the Criminal Justice System. The following are his core skills: Excellent communication skills Excellent management skills Excellent analytical skills Predictive skills The Executive Director: Name 2 The executive director has a Bachelors degree on Criminal Justice Administration from the University of Phoenix. Mr. 2 is very experienced on issues of ethics and governance. He has equally attended various seminars and conferences on ethics and governance to be followed in the administration of Justice. For instance, in 2011, Mr. 2 attended a seminar on ethical values to be followed by law enforcement officers. The seminar was held in Britain and was sponsored by the International Police (Interpol). He acquired knowledge on ethical values to be followed by law enforcement officers and factors that usually determine the behavior of law enforcement officers in relation to obeying their codes of conduct. Mr. 2 has the following strengths: Great communication skills Analytical skills Great skills in research methodologies The Deputy Executive Director: Name 3 The deputy executive director holds a degree in Criminal Justice System from the University of Phoenix. Ms. 3 is a communications expert who has worked on a part time basis as communication expert for the New York Police Department during her holidays. Mrs. 3 has held administrative positions with various law enforcement agencies, such as the CIA, where she was the director of administration and the department of Corrective services where she was in charge of recruitment of new personnel. Ms. 3 has attended various seminars and lectures on communications around the globe. In 2011, she was a participant at the Conference on effective communications skills amongst law enforcement officers held at St Louis Missouri. The conference was sponsored by The United Nations and the American Government. She has also written extensively on Inter-personal communications among law enforcement officers and her journals are used by a number of institutions to teach effective communication skills amongst law enforcement officers. The skills that the deputy director has are, Communications skills. Analytical skills. Research skills. The partners of the firm lack the following skills: Knowledge of substantive and legal procedures. Technological skills. Client Service Skills. The firm will acquire the above skills from students of Phoenix University. They will be employed as legal representatives and they will offer the above named services which the partners of Phoenix Consultancy firm are not very conversant in. Comprehensive Summary of Available Skills Communications Skills. Management Skills. Analytical Skills Predictive Skills. Research Skills. The main target groups of consultancy companies that Phoenix Consultants wants to work with are: International Group of Jurists This group of lawyers will require the services of the three partners of Phoenix Consultants. For instance, this group will need to know the future role of the Criminal Justice System around the globe. This information is useful for their planning of the future activities of Criminal Justice Institutions and in acquisition of funds to support such institutions. Association of Magistrates and Judges This group will require knowledge on how to manage law enforcement and judicial officers. Because of the important roles of Magistrates and Judges in the administration of justice, it is extremely important for them to know how to manage and handle law enforcement offices and judicial officers under them. Association of lawyers and state attorneys This group will require knowledge on research methods in dispensing Justice. They will also require knowledge on means and ways of improving interpersonal communication skills for effective administration of justice and thus Phoenix consultants is a perfect company where they can get such skills and information. Part 2: Analysis of Business Specialty. With the experiences of Mr. 1, Mr. 2 and Ms. 3 in the legal field, they decided to create a consultancy firm called Phoenix Consultants. The firm which has three partners and is structured in a way that it has: A managing Director An executive director A deputy managing director The firm has legal clerks who are mainly fresh graduates from law schools across the United States of America. They hold an integral part in Consultancy group since they carry out research on client issues want and present such issues to the managing director of Phoenix consultants. The directors observed that legal practioners lacked skills in Interpersonal Communications, Ethics in the Criminal Justice System, skills in conducting research in criminal Justice and Knowledge of the Criminal Justice System. On Inter-personal Skills, they observed that most law practioners cannot communicate effectively in written and verbal English and thus the level of Justice Administration is compromised (Wallace and Roberson 2004). Law enforcement officers also lack skills on writing investigative reports further compromising administration of justice. The enforcement officers and legal experts have problems interacting effectively with victims of crime, suspects of criminal activities, incarcerated persons, government officials, staff and civilians. Thus the objective of Phoenix Consultants in respect of this is to provide services on how to improve the Inter-Personal Communication Capability of Law Enforcement officers and the legal practioners for the purposes of effectively administering Justice to the victims of criminal activities. On Ethics in the Criminal Justice System, the directors noted that experts on the legal field are not observing the Ethics of the profession. This is partly because they are unaware of the established ethics and codes of the legal profession or basically ignore the established codes and ethics while pursuing their interests in the legal field (Whinesand, 2009). There is equally limited knowledge on the roles of professional organizations and agencies hence victims of the Criminal Justice System are unable to effectively get justice in case there is a breach of contract between them and practioners of law. There is insufficient knowledge as well on ethics and community relations, ethics in the criminal justice law, procedure and civil liability in law enforcement and correctional services. The objective of Phoenix Law Consultants therefore, is to provide knowledge and information on the above areas as this will help in administering Justice. On methods of research on the Criminal Justice System, the directors of Phoenix Consultants noted that most cases at the courts are lost or won depending on the level of research done on those cases by either prosecutors or defending attorneys. For instance, a large percentage of prosecutors and legal experts are not conversant with quantitative and qualitative tools of research methodology (Hagan 1982). Conducting research is a crucial process in Justice Administration and contributes greatly in whether cases are won or lost. In this respect, Phoenix Consultants’ objective is to provide information to prosecutors and legal experts on effective ways of conducting research in the Criminal Justice System that will effectively enhance the administration of Justice to victims and suspects. On the aspect of the Criminal Justice Personnel, the directors noted that the management of legal personnel is crucial for effective administration of Justice. The better the management of the Criminal Justice Personnel, the better and the more efficient, the administration of Justice to victims and suspects of the System (Carlson and Garrett, 1999). In respect to this, it is the objective of the firm to provide information and knowledge on how to effectively manage personnel who provide services in legal affairs, law enforcement and administration. The Criminal Justice System is evolving and there are changes in the Justice system in respect of Administration, Ethics and Codes of Conduct in laws and the constitutions throughout the world. In respect to this, there is uncertainty in the legal field on what form the Criminal Justice System will look like in the future. As a result, most scholars have given predictions and written numerously on future practices of the Criminal Justice System. For instance, interest is on how the police system will operate on the 21st Century, how the correctional department will function in the 21st century and how the Courts will administer Justice in this period (Bennis, 1966). In respect to this, Phoenix Consultants’ objective is to provide information and knowledge on the emerging trends of the Criminal Justice System around the globe. The targeted group will mainly be legal scholars, legal practitioners, and students of law as well as media houses. Based on the above arguments and information, the overall objective of Phoenix Consultants is to promote effective administration of Justice to victims and suspects of the criminal Justice System. Part 3: Role Identification. The services offered by Phoenix Consultants are basically consultancy services on issues regarding law and in particular on issues regarding Inter-personal Communications, Ethics in Criminal Justice, and Research Methods in Criminal Justice, Managing Criminal Justice Personnel, and the future of the Criminal Justice System. Mr. 1, the Managing director of Phoenix Consultants is an expert in Criminal Justice, its futures and emerging challenges. He holds a bachelors degree in Criminal Justice and he is an expert on the emerging trends of the Criminal Justice Procedure. He will thus provide consultancy services in this area. He is very knowledgeable in the emergence of new features of criminal justice system. For instance, in Africa where he studied the role of the Kenyan Committee of Experts on Creating a Constitution in ways to restructure its Judiciary and the police system in order to effectively combat crime and administer Justice. This study was part of his research proposal in the second year of study at the University of Phoenix. Mr. 1 is an expert on emerging criminal activities such as Cyber crimes, espionage, and international terrorism activities having studied this area extensively during his time at the University of Phoenix. These are new crimes which have emerged in the 21st century and law enforcement officers require skills in combating such crimes. He is therefore very capable of using his knowledge and analytical skills to enlighten law enforcement officers, prosecutors and legal practioners of law. Mr. 1 possesses analytical and predictive skills on issues of future trends of the Criminal Justice System. For instance, the issue of new professions and other employment opportunities in areas that pays better within the larger career of law (Bennis, 1966). He is capable of analytically looking at such issues and provides a solution to such problems. The executive director of Phoenix Consultant, Mr. 2 is an expert of ethics in the governance of legal experts and law enforcement officers. He has a Bachelors degree on criminal justice from the University of Phoenix. The role of Mr. 2 is to provide consultancy services on issues regarding to ethics of law practioners, corrective services personnel and law enforcement officers. Mr. 2 has experience in designing standards and acceptable norms to be followed by law enforcement officers, legal officers, corrective services officers and all government officials responsible for administration of Justice. He is knowledgeable on the ways and means of promoting ethical behavior among law enforcement agencies, corrective services personnel and the legal experts. For instance, he was instrumental in promoting and drafting state laws on Ethics to be followed by police officers and intelligence experts and their after promoting their acceptance among the law enforcement agencies. Ms. 3, the deputy executive director, will provide services on communication skills and how to use inter-personal communication skills for promoting the administration of Justice. She holds a degree in criminal justice system from Phoenix University. Having attended different seminars around the world on issues relating to Inter-Personal Communications for advancing the administration of Justice and written extensively on the channels of communication and when communication is deemed to have happened, she is very skillful and knowledgeable enough to be able to offer consultation services on Inter-personal communication and its importance in the administration of Justice. Ms. 3 will also offer consultation services on the management of Criminal Justice personnel and the importance of motivating these officers while conducting their duties. Part 4: Consultant Scenario Paper As discussed above, the firm has the ability to provide consultancy services in five mentioned areas of the Criminal Justice system. In this section, I will look in detail what these areas of criminal Justice are. I will define them and give a detailed analysis on how they facilitated the development of my consultancy firm. These areas are: Inter-Personal Communications in Respect to the Practice of Law Communication can be defined as a process that involves two or more people for the purposes of exchanging information and ideas (Wallace and Roberson, 2004). The process of communication occurs in five different stages. The Stage of Transmitting an Idea This stage involves the creation of an idea or thoughts and the urge to convey or express this ideas or thoughts. For communication to take place an idea must be formed and an intentional act must occur to transmit the formed idea to another person (Wallace and Roberson, 2004). The Stage of Sending an Idea through a Medium When an idea is transformed into a message, it must be sent. A message can be transferred orally, in writing or by action. On spoken communications, the seriousness of the information is relayed by the tone of the voice (Wallace and Roberson, 2004). Therefore the method at which the information is delivered will determine how the information is received and implemented. The Stage of Receiving the Message The message must be received and acted upon. For this to be achieved, the recipients of the message must be able to understand the contents of the message and thus act upon it. Stage of Understanding the Idea For communication to have occurred, the idea transmitted has to be understood. This is because a feedback is required in the process of communication and if a recipient does not understand the idea, he cannot provide the appropriate feedback. The Stage of Providing a Feedback to the Sender This is the last step in the process of communication. In this stage, the person providing a feedback to the message sender notes that he has understood the message and he is acting on it. In the legal practice, interpersonal communication is of crucial importance for effective administration of Justice and thus need for training of legal experts and law enforcement officers on such issues. Ethics to Be Followed In the Criminal Justice System by Law Enforcement Officers and Legal Practitioners The desire to come up with policies and strategies to fight unlawful or unethical behavior among law enforcement officers is great. Bad and unlawful conduct among police officers, Correctional Services Officers, Judicial Officers and attorneys erodes public confidence on the Justice System. Ethics can thus be defined as choices that people or individuals make regarding right or wrong (Whinesand, 2009). Unethical conduct destroys the morale of the staffs involved in administering Justice. This is because of the public backlash and criticisms (Katz, 1977).Due to this reason, it is essential for practioners of Law to follow the laid down ethics and codes of conduct for their profession. The goals for advancing ethical behaviors in the administration of Justice are five folds, namely: 1. Creating awareness of moral issues that have to be observed in the process of Administration of Justice. 2. Developing skills in critical thinking and analysis for effective administration of Justice. 3. It enhances the vales of responsibility to the law enforcement officers for the benefits of Justice Administration 4. It helps officers to understand the meaning of coercion in the Justice system and avoid such unethical practice which undermines the administration of Justice since it is a recipe for corruption and abuse of office. 5. To create awareness for ethical issues for the purposes of administration of Justice. Based on the above analysis, Phoenix Consultants saw the need to provide guidance on ethical behavior among law enforcement officers and practitioners of law. Research Methods in the Criminal Justice Procedure Research is a crucial aspect in providing Justice to the victims of criminal activities. It is the effectiveness of an attorney’s research on a crime committed that will determine whether he will win a case or not. There are two aspects of research (Hagan, 1982): Qualitative Research Quantitative Research In qualitative research, concepts and themes are viewed as ideas that enhance the understanding of a researcher while in quantitative research, ideas and concepts are given numerical values. Qualitative research understands the reality of the investigation. It explores the subject matter and develops concepts that bring out the understanding and investigations of issues being investigated. Knowledge of research terminologies in the Criminal Justice system is important in respect to the following analysis (Hagan, 1982): It helps legal experts and law enforcement officers to access current and future trends in the field of the criminal Justice system. Knowledge of research terminologies enables practioners of law and law enforcement officers to identify legal conceptual frameworks and acquire sufficient knowledge for the purposes of defending their views in an effective manner for the administration of Justice. The knowledge provides information on tools that are important in addressing issues that arise in the process of conducting affairs in the Criminal Justice system. These tools are necessary in providing skills to legal practioners and law enforcement experts on how to approach legal issues on an aggressive standpoint. Conducting research in Criminal Justice enables officers in this field to understand reports, Journals and articles in this field. For instance, for attorneys and prosecutors to better understand law reports and journals on the emergence of new criminal activities, they need to have background information on the said issues. Based on the above analysis, Phoenix Consultants saw the need to train legal practioners and law enforcement officers on better methods of conducting research in Criminal Justice. Management of Criminal Justice Personnel and on the Emerging Trends of the Criminal Justice System in the 21st Century The Criminal Justice Personnel includes the police, the prosecutors, the judicial staff, probation officers, correctional services officers, juvenile administration officers and officers in various organizations who assist victims of crimes, witnesses and criminal defendants to obtain Justice (Rolef, 2003). Non-governmental organizations are also involved in providing Justice related services and new programs are developed to support government organizations expand the system of administration of Justice. Due to the emergence of these organizations, new administrative procedures and challenges have occurred. The American Justice system experienced tremendous change in its operations and thus new and effective management procedures need to be put in place. In the management of Criminal Justice Personnel, it is crucial to understand the following aspects (Sales, 1977). The police are the most important agents of the Criminal Justice System and emphasis should be laid on effective management of this unit. The Prosecution is also an important aspect of the criminal Justice system, and in their management, they should be independent from the police officers. The defense attorneys also play a crucial role in the administration of Justice since a suspect is given a chance to be defended by experts of law. They are usually private individuals who are experts in legal affairs. In their management, it is the responsibility of the state and the legal organizations to put up the necessary laws required for their operations. System of managing bail, bonds and detention services need to be put in place. System of managing victims and witness services need to be put in place. The Judicial System needs to be managed by professionals and given its independence from the state. On emerging Trends of the Criminal Justice System, there are new forms of crimes emerging in the 21st Century and new ways have to be developed in fighting these crimes. Crimes such as Cyber Crimes have emerged and the expertise necessary in fighting these crimes is needed. There is also the issue of Personnel. The creation of well paying Jobs attracts experts to this field as opposed to the traditional field of providing legal expertise (Bennis, 1966). Phoenix Consultants saw the need to provide consultancy services on issues regarding the evolution of the criminal justice system. In conclusion, Phoenix Consultants has the ability and the expertise to offer the above named services. The ability of the firm is evident on the nature of its staff. These are professionals who are highly trained in their fields of expertise and are therefore very capable of delivering the promised level of services. References Bennis, W. G. (1966). Changing organizations; essays on the development and evolution of human organization. New York: McGraw-Hill. Carlson, P. M., & Garrett, J. S. (1999). Prison and jail administration: practice and theory. Gaithersburg, Md.: Aspen Publishers. Hagan, F. E. (1982). Research methods in criminal justice and criminology. New York: Macmillan ;. Haugen, D. M., & Musser, S. (2009). Criminal justice. Detroit: Greenhaven Press. Katz, B. S. (1997). Justice overruled: unmasking the criminal justice system. New York: Warner Books. Roleff, T. L. (2003). Criminal justice. San Diego, Calif.: Greenhaven Press. Sales, B. D. (1977). The Criminal justice system. New York: Plenum Press. Spechler, I. S. (2008). Special education issues and the juvenile justice system in Texas 2008. Austin, Tex.: State Bar of Texas. Wallace, H., & Roberson, C. (2004). Written and interpersonal communication: methods for law enforcement (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Whisenand, P. M. (2009). Managing police organizations (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Read More