The Civil Justice Reform Debate

Author(s):  
Francis Kofi Korankye-Sakyi

Civil justice comprises the entire system of the administration of justice in civil matters. One significant discourse concerning the civil justice system in the last three decades is reform. This is due to various controversies around the subject resulting in crises. African approaches to civil justice jurisprudence encompass a variety of theoretical and normative elements that shape the way Africans conceive justice delivery. Over the years of the reform debate, not enough light has been shed on this to explain the existence of such perspective. It is argued that the African position to civil justice in the current reforms debate must not be pinned to just the doctrinal option imbedded in statutes but also be based on methods and procedures nurtured on the soil of Africa that align with the practical needs of the people encompassing social, political, cultural, and religious values. The chapter concludes that the African system of justice delivery is largely mirrored in the Ghanaian experience to justice system in civil jurisprudence.

ICR Journal ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 539-542
Author(s):  
Ilham Ramli

Legal pluralism in Malaysia has been traditionally a colonial legacy. Legal pluralism not only posits the existence of multiple legal spheres in the same social field but develops certain suppositions concerning the relationships and interaction between them. One area in which there is apparently interesting interaction is in the administration of justice. Whilst legal pluralism may be celebrated because it moves away from the pre-occupation with legal centralism, society cannot afford to have a justice system that is in disarray. This is indeed the case in Malaysia where a common law tradition and civil justice system seem to be at odds with the strong element of religion in the constitution. For more than 50 years, the Malaysian legal system has had to grapple with the ongoing and seemingly endless conflict of judicial authority between the civil and Syariah courts. Syariah courts in Malaysia are exclusively empowered to hear and dispose of cases among Muslims on subject matters enumerated in the first item of List II of the Ninth Schedule of the Federal Constitution.


2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-63
Author(s):  
Peter O. O. Ottuh ◽  

The popular edible fruit called kola nut that is found all over the Earth is native to the people of West Africa. In Idjerhe (Jesse) culture, the kola nut is part of the people’s traditional religious activities and spirituality. The presentation, breaking, and eating of the kola nut signifies hospitality, friendship, love, mutual trust, manliness, peace, acceptance, happiness, fellowship, and communion with the gods and spirits. These socio-religious values of the kola nut among the Idjerhe people are not well documented,however, and this paper aims to fill the lacuna. It employs participatory observation and oral interviews, supported by a critical review of scholarly literature on the subject. The research posits that churches can use the kola nut as a Eucharistic element that would be meaningful and indigenous to the Idjerhe people.


2000 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith Rix

In the second of my previous two articles on the role of the expert witness, I anticipated the implementation of Lord Woolf's proposed reforms to the civil justice system in England and Wales (Rix, 1999). These changes came into effect on 26 April 1999 and they represent the most radical changes to the civil justice system for a hundred years. In the previous article, it was not possible to do more than list a few of the key points relevant to experts. The purpose of this article is to describe the changes in detail and show how they will, or can be expected to, affect the role of the expert.


Legal Studies ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Higgins

The paper examines the controversial issue of referral fees for personal injury claims. It looks at the function of referral fees in the civil justice system, their relationship to the guarantees of access to court and the right to seek legal assistance in ECHR Art 6, and the debate about promoting access to justice or a litigious society. It examines the experience of the referral fees market in England and Wales, where the costs of referrals have risen dramatically and there is concern that referrers are auctioning their customers to the highest bidder rather than helping them find competent lawyers. Sir Rupert Jackson recommended banning referral fees in his report on the costs of civil litigation, and the Government has announced it will implement this recommendation. The paper considers the potential effects of a ban on competition in the legal services market and its compatibility with UK and EU competition law. The paper argues that a combination of better regulation of the industry and proper regulation of costs rules is a better and more proportionate way of controlling legal costs and the quality of legal services than an outright ban. While referral fees have not delivered all the benefits one would expect from a for-profit independent referrals service, they can help people obtain information about their legal rights, and competent lawyers to enforce them. This service is particularly valuable given that the state has substantially cut public funding of the civil justice system in recent years.


1988 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 137 ◽  
Author(s):  
William M. O'Barr ◽  
John M. Conley

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 97
Author(s):  
Steven E. Pegalis

Objective: The aim of this paper is to evaluate a hypothesis premised on the idea that if medical leaders in the United States support an unfettered access for patients injured by medical error to the American civil justice system, that approach would improve patient safety and be cost effective. Method: An analysis of the relevant legal and medical literature. Results: Medical liability in the American civil justice system derived from traditional tort law is based on accountability. Reforms applied to medical liability cases urged by healthcare providers limit and in some cases eliminate legal rights of patients injured by healthcare error which rights exist for all others in non-medical cases. Yet medical liability cases have promoted a culture of safety. Information learned from medical liability cases has been used to make care safer with a reduced incidence of adverse outcomes and lower costs. A just culture of safety can limit provider emotional stress. Using the external pressures to reduce the incidence of law suits and promoting ethical mandates to be safer and disclose the truth can promote provider satisfaction. Conclusions: An alliance between legal and medical professionals on the common ground of respect for the due process legal rights of patients in the American system of justice and the need for accountability can make care safer and can be cost effective.


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