Essential Updates, Strategies, and Case Law for Pennsylvania Criminal Defense

Couldn’t attend this year’s Criminal Law Symposium? You can still catch up on every major session with the 2025 Criminal Law Symposium E-Book, your complete, searchable resource for staying sharp on Pennsylvania criminal law and procedure.

This comprehensive digital volume compiles materials from both volumes of the Symposium and includes an additional supplement on capital punishment developments. It’s written by and for practicing attorneys, judges, scholars, and public defenders, offering detailed analysis, real-world strategies, and legislative insights you won’t find anywhere else.

Spanning hundreds of pages, the 2025 e-Book delivers timely guidance on topics that matter most to criminal law practitioners:

• Year in Review: Criminal Law Case Update: Summaries and analysis of pivotal decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court, Pennsylvania Supreme Court, and Superior Court across search and seizure, evidence, sentencing, and procedural issues.
• Cutting-Edge Sentencing Law: In-depth review of Pennsylvania’s sentencing statutes, guidelines, and court decisions, including mandatory minimums, sentencing merger, parole policy shifts, and updates to the 8th Edition Guidelines.
• Emerging Trial Issues: Guidance on how to handle digital evidence, deepfakes, implicit bias in voir dire, and defending against AI-based prosecutorial tools — critical tools for courtroom success.
• Capital Case & Death Penalty Update (Supplement): Includes a comprehensive overview of the status of Pennsylvania’s death penalty, current legislation, and U.S. Supreme Court developments, presented by the Death Penalty Policy Project.
• Post-Conviction & Habeas Strategy: Learn best practices for federal habeas corpus petitions and PCRA litigation, including ethical boundaries and evidentiary pitfalls.
• Professional Ethics & Wellbeing: Explore ethical obligations related to “dirty money,” difficult clients, and the emotional toll of capital defense — all discussed with clarity and compassion by veteran defense attorneys.
  

This e-book features contributions from top criminal defense attorneys, current and former judges, public defenders, and scholars. Full author details can be found within the materials.