Understanding effectiveness and efficiency of justice and legal aid policies

The organization of the judicial system is in a turbulent period due to budget cuts and the introduction of innovative initiatives within the judiciary. The general conclusion of the policy analysis of the administration of justice and legal aid is therefore that this period can be considered an ‘intermezzo’. Therefore, only limited statements can be made about the effectiveness and efficiency of the conducted policy.

For the Ministry of Justice and Security, we conducted a policy review of Article 32 of the budget, Administration of Justice and Legal Aid. The core of the policy behind this article is the facilitation of independent justice. With this policy audit, we provided insight into the efficiency and effectiveness of the policy implemented between 2016 and 2020.

In addition to the overall conclusion, the report contains two policy recommendations to the ministry that ull contribute to a qualitative, accessible and productive justice system. – First, robust funding for both the judiciary and legal aid without large annual fluctuations helps relevant agencies pursue more long-term policies. This benefits the sustainable development of the system.

Second, the innovative initiatives are currently in the pilot phase. To fully realize their potential, it is important to learn from the outcomes of the pilots, and eventually translate them into policy at the national level. A first challenge is to act immediately when something turns out not to work as intended. For example, it must be possible to make interim adjustments. A second challenge is to consider whether and how pilots and initiatives can be rolled out more widely if they prove to contribute to a more effective and efficient justice system.

For more information about the evaluation (in Dutch), contact Gabrielle op ‘t Hoog.