United States v. Davila, No. 12-167; U.S. Supreme Court; opinion by Ginsburg, J.; partial concurrence by Scalia, J.; decided June 13, 2013. On certiorari to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11 governs guilty pleas. Rule 11(c)(1) instructs that "[t]he court must not participate in [plea] discussions," and Rule 11(h) states that a "variance from the requirements of th[e] rule is harmless error if it does not affect substantial rights." Rule 52(a), which covers trial court errors generally, similarly prescribes: "Any error … that does not affect substantial rights must be disregarded."
