The appointment of counsel fully satisfies constitutional guarantees on providing prisoners, including pretrial detainees, access to the courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has ruled.

The court ruled against a prisoner who claimed he was effectively denied access to the courts because he was denied adequate materials by the prison law library. It said "constitutionally acceptable access to the courts through appointed counsel is not measured by reference to the Sixth Amendment's guarantee of effective assistance of counsel." Bourdon v. Loughren, 03-0196.

Link to: Full Text of New York Lawyer article.
Link to: Bourdon v. Loughren Decision (PDF)