In cases in which evidence for or against a defendant is questionable, plea bargains may represent a feasible way for the attorneys to minimize their potential losses by settling on a mutually acceptable outcome.

Plea bargaining can also be a way for the courts to preserve scarce resources for the cases that demand the most attention.

Plea bargains allow prosecutors to avoid trials, which are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and costly but carry no guarantee of success. Through plea bargaining, prosecutors can ensure some penalty for offenders who might be acquitted on technicalities.

The practice allows judges to preside over efficient trials and minimize the risk of rulings being overturned on appeal.

Plea bargains also eases the court’s burden of determining guilt, because the responsibility for sentencing is shared with the attorneys who strike the bargain.

-from the Britannica encyclopedia

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