United States ex rel. Gilbert Rivera v. Gayle Franzen (Rivera II)
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
794 F.2d 314 (1986)
- Written by Monica Rottermann , JD
Facts
Gilbert Rivera (plaintiff) previously filed a habeas suit in federal court against the director of the department of corrections, Gayle Franzen (defendant). Gilbert argued that his attorney, Lionel Livingston, had provided ineffective assistance by failing to investigate Gilbert’s mental health for an insanity defense and presenting only a theory of self-defense. The district court found that although Livingston had no reason to know about Gilbert’s mental health history, Livingston’s failure to investigate constituted ineffective assistance. The court likened an attorney’s duty to investigate to the court’s duty to inquire on competence. The district court, however, denied Gilbert’s habeas petition after finding that Gilbert had failed to establish prejudice under Strickland v. Washington. Gilbert appealed to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that Strickland should not be applied retroactively to his case and that an exception for prejudice existed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Flaum, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
