Human justice: An elegy

Kwantlen University College     

Undergraduate justice system education and training at San Jose state university: An historical perspective

Since its inception in 1930, the Administration of Justice Department at San Jose State University has undergone numerous changes. This article develops a curriculum orientation matrix to analyze those changes. The results of the application of the matrix indicate movement from a law enforcement, training emphasis to the present system-oriented, professional-social science mix.     

Economic justice in later life: A Canadian perspective

A view of distributive or economic justice is presented. Economic justice can best be achieved through the construction and administration of social policies that promote equality of condition and opportunity such that people are able to achieve equitable outcomes based on their needs and the community's assessment of their contributions. A discussion of the income security situation of older Canadians provides an empirical vehicle for illustrating this view. The point is made that before economic justice can prevail social policies must be developed such that current levels of structured inequality are significantly moderated. Equity will be realized only when there is a shift in policy-making such that claims of citizenship take precedence over those claims based on the rights of property.     

试析以事实为根据以法律为准绳原则司法价值理念的变迁

本文以发展的眼光,对我国法律中的以事实为根据以法律为准绳原则进行了回顾与反思。并从该项原则所具有的实事求是的马克思主义思想基础、朴素的现代法治理念,以及符合中国社会实际的立法科学精神等方面,论证了其在我国社会主义法制建设中得以立足的现实合理性。在此基础上指出了现实司法实践中大量地存在着对"双以"原则认识僵化的问题,而这些僵化落后认识的存在,是由于我国长期的社会变迁所造成的。     

Space, time and function: intersecting principles of responsibility across the terrain of criminal justice

This paper considers the interpretive significance of the intersecting relationships between different conceptions of responsibility as they shift over space and time. The paper falls into two main sections. The first gives an account of several conceptions of responsibility: two conceptions founded in ideas of capacity; two founded in ideas of character, and one founded in the relationship between an agent and the outcome which she causes. The second main section uses this differentiated conceptual account to analyse and interpret certain aspects of the contemporary criminal law of England and Wales. In conclusion, the paper considers a number of hypotheses about what the evidence of certain shifts in the relationship between the three families of responsibility-conception can tell us about the current state and significance of criminal law among other systems of social governance.

Criminal justice employee rights: An overview

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the legal rights of criminal justice employees. Among the issues discussed are: property interests in employment; due process and other rights in discipline and termination; First Amendment rights; privacy rights; and protections against discrimination and a hostile work environment. The affirmative obligation of the criminal justice agency to take a proactive stance in formulation, implementation, and enforcement of policies is also discussed.     

Employee concerns regarding self-managing work teams: A multidimensional justice perspective

The increase in the use of self-managing work teams in organizations has been accompanied by growing employee resistance and concern about what such dramatic changes mean to workers. Using an organizational justice perspective, this chapter identifies and examines employee concerns about the move to self-managing work teams in two Fortune 500 organizations. Employee fairness concerns regarding three types of justice—distributive, procedural, and interactional—are highlighted. Findings suggest that to address employee fairness concerns regarding the move to self-managing work teams, managers should act distributively, procedurally, and interactionally justly.[Self-managing work teams are] the right way and the only way to be productive.—Self-managing work team member in a Fortune 500 company     

Restorative justice: the indigenous justice system

Dramatically different beliefs about justice will produce dramatically different methods for achieving justice. The beliefs underlying the traditional Indigenous restorative justice systems, systems that dramatically differ from the European-based system practiced in the USA are presented. The discussion highlights the legacy of colonialism for tribal communities and the resilience and creative resistance that have continued to characterize the spirit and ingenuity of Indigenous peoples.     

Limitations on the ability to negotiate justice: attorney perspectives on guilt,innocence, and legal advice in the current plea system

In the American criminal justice system the vast majority of criminal convictions occur as the result of guilty pleas, often made as a result of plea bargains, rather than jury trials. The incentives offered in exchange for guilty pleas mean that both innocent and guilty defendants plead guilty. We investigate the role of attorneys in this context, through interviews with criminal defense attorneys. We examine defense attorney perspectives on the extent to which innocent defendants are (and should be) pleading guilty in the current legal framework and investigate their views of their own role in this complex system. We also use a hypothetical case to probe the ways in which defense attorneys consider guilt or innocence when providing advice on pleas. Results indicate that attorney advice is influenced by guilt or innocence, but also that attorneys are limited in the extent to which they can negotiate justice for their clients in a system in which uncertainty and large discrepancies between outcomes of guilty pleas and conviction at trial can make it a sensible option to plead guilty even when innocent. Results also suggest conflicting opinions over the role of the attorney in the plea-bargaining process.     

Measuring attitudes toward grievance systems: A procedural justice perspective applied to the workplace

Contractual grievance procedures have long been utilized in union-management relationships to resolve workplace disputes. Little research attention, however, has focused on determining unionized workers' perceptions of and attitudes about such procedures. This study develops an instrument designed to measure worker attitudes toward the grievance procedure (ATGP). The survey items and conceptual framework are based on prior research in the areas of administrative and procedural justice. Employing a national sample (N=1080) from a single union, the results support a multidimensional attitudinal measure. Four key dimensions of workers' assessment of the grievance procedure were found: (i) Fairness, (ii) Effectiveness, (iii) Representation, and (iv) Importance. The structure of the measure was stable across identified sub-groups in the sample. Some differences in the attitudinal assessment on the four dimensions emerged depending upon union office holding and the grievance-filing experience of the respondents. Last, potential future applications of the instrument are discussed.     

Teaching criminal justice research: An experiential model

Teaching research methods to undergraduate criminal justice students typically has been viewed as problematic. Students often experience considerable anxiety concerning required research courses and frequently lack the motivation to learn and appreciate the usefulness of research. Experiential case studies have been successfully utilized to teach criminal justice students the application of theory in practical situations. An evaluation of the experiential model was made in a post-test only control group research design with two groups of criminal justice research students. The results of the comparison supported the experiential approach and showed greater success utilizing this method over a traditional teaching method.     

Contractual Limitations on the Auditor's Liability: An Uneasy Combination of Law and Accounting

Operative as from 6 April 2008, sections 532–538 of the Companies Act 2006 create a new liability limitation regime in contractual relationships between audit firms and companies in relation to the statutory audit function which overturns an almost eighty years old fundamental principle of company law. This new regime is the product of continuing pressure by the audit profession for liability reform and concern by Government regarding the market structure for audit services. This commentary critically evaluates the regime from law and accounting perspectives. It concludes by reflecting on its longer term implications for audit quality, perceptions of the audit profession and the evolution of a future research agenda.     

The role of procedural justice in the allocation of limited resources: A West German perspective

Following the experimental design used by Barrett-Howard and Tyler (1986), this study examines the importance given by West German university students to procedural and distributive justice allocation decision making. After reading one of eight scenarios in which there was a limited resource to be allocated, the subjects answered questions concerning the importance and meaning of justice. For the most part, the results correspond to previous U.S. findings of the importance of procedural justice and its definition across various allocation settings. However, the West German students placed greater importance on having mechanisms for correcting inadequate decisions than did their American counterparts. Beyond the design of the initial U.S. study, however, the West German students were asked in an open-ended format to discuss their concerns in making the allocation decision. Nearly half of the unprompted responses centered around justice issues.     

Anonymously restored: the natural partnership and mutual instruction of Alcoholics Anonymous and restorative justice

Today, western academicians continue to examine, learn from, and respect the many indigenous forms of what is often deemed ‘restorative justice.’ The following paper presents a similar process of learning through the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) program. AA is a time-tested practice that persists because of its ability to promote personal and group harmony. It is isolated as a western subgroup that, like many indigenous justice traditions, contains a restorative fabric and may serve as an instructive case study. As a living model of restorative practice, AA is able to sharpen aspects of restorative justice theory, though this theory is also used to comment upon perceived weaknesses in the AA program. More generally, this paper seeks to raise awareness for restorative practice that occurs naturally in many western contexts. It is important that proponents/advocates of restorative justice begin to consider the ways in which unseen or anonymous allies may support the development and expansion of restorative justice.     

(Re)configuring the criminal justice response to human trafficking: a complex-systems perspective

Abstract

The multidimensional complexities associated with the criminal justice response to human trafficking are well documented. The transient and subversive nature of human trafficking as organised crime and the large number of multidisciplinary role-players involved in coordinating cross jurisdictional efforts to prevent, investigate and prosecute such cases, contribute to this complex undertaking. Complex systems theory suggests that a complex social problem such as human trafficking cannot be approached by using a linear or simplified lens, and requires a holistic perspective on the complex interactions between actors, and emergent behaviour in both the criminal justice system and the human trafficking system that it seeks to combat. This paper explores the characteristics of complexity, and uses illustrations from the lived experiences of actors in South Africa’s efforts to combat human trafficking, in order to demonstrate how complex systems theory could be considered and integrated into the criminal justice response to human trafficking.