Every year, over half a million crashes on American highways involve commercial motor vehicles. These crashes result in enough fatalities to wipe out the entire population of more than any one of half of America’s towns. Many involve repeat violators, some of whom would not have been on the road if Federal and state CDLs/CMVs laws were properly and ethically enforced.
Increasingly, the modern-day Traffic and Criminal Court is experiencing higher volume and fewer resources. Despite this trend, Access to Justice remains imperative especially when balanced against the need to address cases requiring specialized attention such as CDL drivers who are prohibited from engaging in certain plea agreements. Judges who handle cases involving CDLs/CMVs are often unaware of federal regulations and state laws that require courts to treat commercial drivers differently than non-commercial drivers. This webinar will explore issues of both Access to Justice and Procedural Justice as juxtaposed against the concerns of CDL holders.
Course Objectives:
After this course, participants will be able to:
Identify applicable Federal and state CDL/CMV laws;
Determine what constitutes “masking”;
Discover the unique definition of a “conviction” under CDL/CMV laws;
Summarize the major components related to Access to Justice;
Hone techniques designed to improve in-court caseflow management and
identify CDL cases with potential masking problems;
Balance Procedural Fairness concerns to avoid federal masking violations; and
Develop ethical and efficient procedures for the handling of CDL/CMV cases in
