Procedural Future: The Politics of Positioning

Abstract

In the first chapter, we compared the ways in which the participating members are able to realize the procedural past with the help of various means of preparation: stories, documents, files, testimonies, motions, and correspondences. As can be seen from the past, “doing procedure” takes place whenever members quote from the protocol, repeat a story, or ask questions about the facts that have already been introduced. Doing procedure takes place whenever members realize the procedural past for all practical purposes. From this perspective, it seems that the procedural course is prepared by the various members who make a contribution to it. But we need to ask: is the stage of preparation and trial a right, a systemic necessity, or a most relevant concept? Can it indeed explain why and how casework is carried out?