Judicial Responses Research Articles

Stakeholder perceptions of gaps and solutions in addressing child trafficking

IntroductionGovernments, researchers, and community-based organizations have mobilized to develop interventions and programs addressing child trafficking, resulting in large amounts of financial resources allocated to awareness-raising campaigns, crisis services for survivors, and increasing judicial responses to trafficking. Low-resource and low-income countries face the dual challenge of addressing child trafficking within an environment where extreme poverty is pervasive and customary norms might conflict with national anti-trafficking policies. The purpose of this study is to understand challenges faced in addressing child trafficking and identify interventions that are community-driven and contextually relevant. MethodologyThe study used a qualitative community-based participatory research approach by collaborating with local researchers, government, and NGOs to examine how key stakeholders perceive existing gaps in policies and programs aimed at countering child trafficking in Sierra Leone. ResultsSix gaps in policies and services were identified by stakeholders: access to and availability of local programs and services for families; access to and affordability of schooling and vocational training in local communities; lack of policy implementation and enforcement of existing laws, especially at the local level; inadequate funding for anti-trafficking service providers; lack of community support for survivors of trafficking, and a lack of coordinated and consistent community response. In a demonstration of the trauma-informed and survivor-centered study design, participants also suggested possible ways to bridge these gaps. Discussion and conclusionAn ecological approach is critical in designing policies and programs responsive to the complex problem of child trafficking within an environment of low resources and potential conflicts between cultural norms and national policies. Practitioners in such contexts must be culturally-competent and prepared to seamlessly work across the micro-mezzo-macro continuum to enhance the best interest of the child.

Raison d'être for the judicial process

Several Spanish authors have conceptualised the judicial process as a forced and inevitable temporal evolution that must precede the resolution of the controversy and that depends on slowness —as the antithesis of immediacy—. According to this doctrine, this process aims to avoid an immediate judicial response. In this paper, I will examine why the judicial process has been defined in this way; the reasons why speed is not desirable in the judicial function. To this end, I draw on the findings of cognitive psychology and, more specifically, on a set of theories that support the existence of two ways of processing information —two ways of knowing, believing, thinking, reasoning, and acting—: one fast and one slow; these are the dual processing theories. As a result of this confrontation, I propose a rationale, a purpose, and a definition for the judicial process, which are based on the idea that the presence of a time interval is necessary for the right to judicial impartiality and the right of defence to —materially— exist.

Legislative Efforts for Institutionalization of Judges' Appointments and Judicial Response: An Appraisal of 18 th And 19 th Constitutional Amendments

Legislative Efforts for Institutionalization of Judges' Appointments and Judicial Response: An Appraisal of 18 th And 19 th Constitutional Amendments

The Long-Term Impact of Kelo v. City of New London: Comparing State Legislative and Judicial Responses

The Long-Term Impact of Kelo v. City of New London: Comparing State Legislative and Judicial Responses

Judicial Responses to Politically Sensitive Cases in an Authoritarian Setting: The Case of Hong Kong

Courts around the globe have increasingly handled politically sensitive issues. Judicial decisions that are unfavourable to the political elites may invite political attacks. An emerging literature has explored how courts around the world develop strategies to respond to politically thorny issues. This article contributes to this literature by studying how courts in Hong Kong develop strategies for handling politically sensitive cases. Based on in-depth analysis of 58 politically sensitive cases that were heard by courts in Hong Kong between 1999 and 2023, this article finds that Hong Kong’s courts adopt the following strategies: deference to the government, denying standing to the applicants, ruling that the applicants failed to follow the proper procedures, deciding that a dispute does not exist, delaying the political and legal effects of judgments that are unfavourable to the government, and emphasising that politics plays no role in judges’ decisions.

Examining the Criminal Responsibility of Minors in Light of the 2013 Islamic Penal Code

Although Iranian criminal law, similar to other jurisprudential-legal schools, considers minors to lack criminal responsibility, it has explicitly addressed in various legal articles, including Article 88 of the Islamic Penal Code (IPC), the commission of crimes by this age group, and has specified discretionary punishments, Hudud, retribution (Qisas), and blood money (Diyat). However, due to the offender's age and lack of maturity, they are deemed deserving of protective and educational measures rather than punitive sanctions. The aim of this article is to examine the aspects of maturity and its impact on the criminal responsibility of individuals, followed by the type of judicial response within the framework of Iran's modern criminal policy. This research, using a descriptive-analytical method and gathering sources and documents through library-based studies, concludes that although the IPC refers to the criminal responsibility of minors in several articles, according to the explicit wording of Article 146 of the IPC, with reference to Article 2 of the IPC, which defines criminal behavior as one that entails a specific punishment, not protective and educational measures, the behavior committed by a minor cannot be considered a crime. Consequently, a minor never bears criminal responsibility, and protective and educational measures are solely for the purpose of discipline, correction, and preventing recidivism in the future.

The Need for Artificial Intelligence in Solving Unsolved Criminal Cases and Sentencing in Malaysia

As humans, it is common for judges to give wrong verdicts when making decisions, especially in criminal cases. As such, those who feel that they have been wronged by the courts will thus appeal against the decisions. Due to the sheer volume of appeals, it has resulted in a backlog of cases. However, there is no one solution to solve the problem other than calling the judicial officers to improve themselves with legal knowledge before the real use of Artificial Intelligence in legal policy. In the current digital era, it is believed that Artificial Intelligence can accelerate and automate the review of potential evidence in identifying the most relevant and accurate evidence. With the help of Artificial Intelligence, it will reduce court unsolved cases. Countries such as the United States of America, Colombia, and China have started implementing Artificial Intelligence in their respective judicial systems. Yet Singapore’s criminal courts have no plan to use Artificial Intelligence in sentencing. Therefore, it has raised questions like should Malaysia’s judicial response to the use of Artificial Intelligence in cracking those backlog criminal cases and how far could it go in helping the judges. This paper seeks to highlight the issues.

The Controversial Maternity Supplement Due to Demographic Contribution: Practical Issues and Regulatory and Judicial Responses

This paper addresses the study and analysis of the establishment of the maternity supplement towards the current contributory pension supplement for the reduction of the gender gap from three key points. In the first place, and to understand the establishment of the pension supplement, the basis and legal regime of the so-called maternity supplement is analysed. Secondly, the arguments of the CJEU of 12 December 2019, case C-450/18 are set out, which, as a result of the practical application of the maternity supplement for demographic contribution, declared that there was direct discriminatory treatment on grounds of sex between men and women and that the Spanish legislation was contrary to Council Directive 79/7/EEC, of 19 December 1978 on the progressive implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women in matters of social security. Likewise, due to its relevant interest in the matter, the latest CJEU in the matter is addressed, specifically the CJEU of 14 September 2023, case C-311/22. Finally, the legal regime of the new pension supplement for the reduction of the gender gap is briefly described.

Do Judges Understand Technology? How Attorneys and Advocates View Judicial Responsibility in Cyberstalking and Cyberharassment Cases

Do Judges Understand Technology? How Attorneys and Advocates View Judicial Responsibility in Cyberstalking and Cyberharassment Cases

Developing the integrity of corruption crime judges: evidence in Indonesia

This research seeks to further investigate issues pertaining to enhancing the integrity of judges handling corruption cases in Indonesia. The research employs a normative juridical perspective and utilizes a qualitative method that is descriptive and analytical in character. This method aims to objectively describe the relationship between a phenomena, idea, data, or fact. The data collection methods involved conducting library research and analyzing primary, secondary, and tertiary legal sources, including scientific contributions published in academic research databases. Meanwhile, the research employs descriptive qualitative analysis for data analysis. Research indicates that it is imperative to cultivate the integrity of judges involved in corruption cases, as judges play a pivotal role in ensuring a fair and responsible legal system. A judge who possesses integrity in cases involving corruption is characterized by intellectual honesty, a commitment to prioritize their judicial responsibilities over personal interests, adherence to the law, astuteness in interpersonal interactions and other endeavors, adeptness in managing personal funds, and a rigorous and meticulous approach. Perform judicial responsibilities to establish an organizational culture rooted in the principle of absolute intolerance against criminal acts of corruption, bribery, and violations of laws and regulations. Thus, by enhancing the integrity of judges involved in corruption cases in Indonesia through the implementation of human resource management characteristics, it is expected that the impartiality and responsibility of judges in handling corruption cases would be considered to fulfill the standards of fairness and legal assurance. Therefore, it is anticipated that the results of this study will have a beneficial impact on upholding and enhancing the integrity and prestige of judges and the judicial system in Indonesia with regards to corruption offenses.

Pivoting in a Pandemic: Virtual Hearings, Vulnerable Witnesses and the Journey Toward a More Therapeutic Caribbean Court

In the global judicial response to COVID-19 restrictions, virtual hearings were expanded beyond special accommodations for children and vulnerable witnesses to facilitate a range of court proceedings. Not much is known about the phenomenon in Caribbean contexts. As a result of this gap, the current study analyzes content from Practice Directions issued by Supreme Courts in Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Eastern Caribbean from 2020 to 2022. It identifies patterns in the rules surrounding virtual hearings and their relevance to the vision of a more therapeutic Caribbean court. Results indicate that in generalizing virtual hearings, witness needs are not adequately addressed.

기후위기 대응과 공법의 역할

The state and local governments are implementing emissions trading systems and carbon neutral policies to reduce greenhouse gases. Nevertheless, the Earth is facing a climate crisis due to the increase in greenhouse gases generated from energy generation, steel and chemical industries, energy in the home and transportation, industrial processes such as cement, agriculture, and waste. The number of cases of youth and future generations filing climate lawsuits in the Constitutional Court and courts regarding the climate crisis is increasing, and the issue of guaranteeing basic climate rights under the Constitution is becoming a social issue.
 Therefore, a public legal response is urgently needed so that the state and local governments can protect the lives, bodies, and property of citizens in order to respond to the climate crisis and achieve sustainable development, and guarantee the right of current and future generations to live in a pleasant environment.
 In this paper, after examining the concept of climate crisis and Korea's climate crisis response legislation, we review legislative precedents and precedents in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and France to find implications for Korea. In addition, the provisions on climate crisis response are stipulated in the Constitution, guaranteeing basic climate rights to protect against damage caused by climate change, the role of the Climate Crisis Response Act, climate crisis response and cooperation through cooperative climate governance, and the freedom of the current generation to respond to the climate crisis. We review the role of public law by discussing emergency declarations and public law issues in response to the crisis of climate change, guaranteeing future generations' temporal climate crisis protection rights, and protecting future generations.
 For climate protection and response to the climate crisis, the Constitution should specify climate change reduction goals, basic climate rights, and cooperative measures to respond to the climate crisis, and legislatively consider the “urgent need” of the climate crisis beyond the concept of climate protection. In addition, in order to ensure equity and fairness due to infringement of basic rights related to the climate crisis, basic climate rights should be guaranteed under the constitution as well as legislative, scientific, and judicial responsibilities. In addition, the Climate Crisis Response Act should be enacted on necessary measures to make the climate crisis effective by public law. The Climate Crisis Response Act shall be guided and complementary in relation to the Building Act, the National Territory Planning Act, the Economic Act, the Disaster Safety Act, etc., and shall prescribe clear legal responsibility and due process for the climate crisis. In addition, climate crisis response requires cooperation by establishing climate governance between the state and local governments, between local governments, and between countries, so climate change reduction technologies and climate crisis response strategies should be shared, and legal countermeasures should be prepared in cooperation with each other. In addition, in order to reasonably allocate the cost burden of the climate crisis, the right to protect the temporal climate crisis should be clearly established legally and systematically to lead a life in a comfortable environment in accordance with the principle of equity and proportionality for current and future generations. The state or local government's climate emergency declaration and emergency plans on climate change crises and risks, administrative measures under executive orders, scientific predictions of climate crises and improve the vulnerability of disasters, and the role and legal responsibility of responding to climate crises should be considered in public law.

Upholding Banker’s Duty of Confidentiality in Tanzania: an Examination of Legislative and Judicial Responses

Abstract Trust and confidence are the foundations of a banker-customer relationship. As a result, any information customers submit to their bankers is expected to be kept confidential. This expectation can only be met if the relevant legislative frameworks are in place to ensure that bankers are held accountable for their confidentiality agreements. While there is legislation in place to protect the privacy of customer information in Tanzania, a growing number of laws, notably those dealing with crime prevention and control, have been enacted, with the consequence of undermining bankers’ confidentiality obligations. Therefore, this article examines how recent legislative and judicial developments have addressed the confidentiality obligations imposed on bankers. In general, it has been observed and established that the protection of customers’ information provided by banking laws is usually degraded by other laws, particularly those pertaining to crime prevention, hence weakening banker’s duty of confidentiality.

Refund of mistakenly paid and/or overpaid customs duties: ways to improve the effectiveness of the protection of the rights of economic operators

The article draws attention to the fact that, at the moment, there is significant support among administrative courts for the opinion according to which the measure of judicial response to the fact that the customs authority did not prepare a conclusion on the recovery of mistakenly paid and/ or overpaid customs duties from the budget is to recognize this inaction as unlawful and placing the respective customs authority under obligation to prepare such a conclusion and submit it to the state treasury. In contrast to this, according to the provisions of the doctrine of effective judicial protection, which is approved in the literal meaning of the provisions of the legislation on administrative proceedings and is developed and specified in the practice of its interpretation and application, optimal ways of influencing the court on disputed legal relations in cases of illegality of decisions, actions and inactions of sub In many cases, the subject of power has a direct obligation to restore violated rights. In light of this, it is justified that an effective method of judicial protection of the rights of declarants against the inaction of customs authorities in the framework of the procedure for the return of mistakenly and/or excessively paid amounts of customs payments, which would fully and definitively restore their rights, excluding the need for repeated appeals to the court by ensuring the possibility of enforcement of a court decision, there is a collection from the state budget through the state treasury of mistakenly and/or excessively paid amounts of customs payments. It is noted that for the possibility of forced recovery of erroneously and/or excessively paid amounts of customs payments by the administrative court, the declarant must confirm that he has fulfilled all the requirements of the law for this, in particular, that he has no tax debt. It is noted that the further perspective of increasing the effectiveness of the protection of the rights of declarants in legal relations regarding the return of mistakenly and/or excessively paid amounts of customs payments is the introduction of the possibility of administrative courts to collect these funds based on the results of consideration not only of cases about the return of mistakenly and/or excessively paid amounts of customs payments, but and by satisfying the requirement for this in cases in which the illegality of the decisions of the customs authorities is established, which led to the groundless accrual or additional accrual of the amounts of customs payments (in particular, in the cases of recognition as illegal and cancellation of the decision on the adjustment of the customs value of goods). This should optimize the organizational and economic losses of declarants and customs authorities, caused by the need to apply for formal confirmation of the existence of grounds for the return of mistakenly and/or excessively paid amounts of customs payments under a special procedure.

Joint liability and aggravation? An inspection of legislative and judicial practices in cases of the crime of the abduction, sale, and purchase of women and children in China

Human trafficking is a harmful, widespread and pressing issue that demands attention. However, the prevalence of such crimes may vary across different countries and time periods, which means that there may not be a universal solution to addressing them. In response to the recent public outcry sparked by the incident of the woman chained in Feng County, Xuzhou, this article provides a comprehensive review of China’s legislative and judicial responses to crimes against women and children who are abducted and sold, as well as the corresponding governance effects and causes. This study examines whether the punishment for buying and trafficking women and children should be increased through criminal law amendments and whether the current public outrage calling for equal punishment for buyers and sellers is justified. To provide a rational response to these issues, the article reviews all relevant laws, regulations, judicial cases, and typical cases from 1979 to 2022. An analysis of the change in case processing over the years was conducted using MATLAB software with the baseline panel regression model, robustness checks, and mechanism tests. This study reveals a decline on human trafficking crimes in China, but four provinces (Yunnan, Henan, Shandong, and Fujian) have a higher incidence. The article offers a comprehensive analysis from both macro and micro perspectives. National macro factors such as economic development, social welfare policies, rural revitalization, and COVID-19 prevention contribute to the decline. From a micro perspective, local differences in these provinces are a significant reason for high incidence from a micro perspective. This article suggests that legal amendments to increase punishment would be ineffective. Instead, existing legal provisions should be applied, and decision-making rules from typical cases should be utilized.

International Criminal Justice at the Russia-Ukraine Crossroads

Abstract The international community’s judicial response to the aggression of Russia against Ukraine in February 2022 and to the ensuing conflict is unprecedented in many ways. This article focuses on the investigations into the commission of war crimes and other serious international crimes conducted by Ukrainian authorities, other national authorities, various international bodies and the International Criminal Court (ICC), whose jurisdiction was triggered by a referral by 43 States parties to the ICC Statute. Some critical remarks are offered on the ambivalent relationship between Ukraine and the ICC. Ukraine is not a party to the ICC Statute, but the Court can exercise its jurisdiction by virtue of two ad hoc declarations rendered in 2014 and 2015. Despite the time that has elapsed since these declarations, Ukraine has not yet ratified the Statute and its government seems oriented to exploit the ICC mainly in an anti-Russian perspective. More in general, the huge efforts put in place by the international community in the investigation of international crimes committed in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine are disproportionate when compared to all other situations investigated and are already attracting criticism about selective justice. Such efforts represent on the one hand a potential model for a coordinated intervention in situations where mass atrocities are committed, on the other hand they are likely to remain isolated and confirm the perception that international criminal justice and the ICC are instruments in the hands of a few States.

Does Victim Gender Matter for Justice Delivery? Police and Judicial Responses to Women’s Cases in India

Are women disadvantaged whilst accessing justice? I chart, for the first time, the full trajectory of accessing justice in India using an original dataset of roughly half a million crime reports, subsequently merged with court files. I demonstrate that particular complaints can be hindered when passing through nodes of the criminal justice system, and illustrate a pattern of “multi-stage” discrimination. In particular, I show that women's complaints are more likely to be delayed and dismissed at the police station and courthouse compared to men. Suspects that female complainants accuse of crime are less likely to be convicted and more likely to be acquitted, an imbalance that persists even when accounting for cases of violence against women (VAW). The application of machine learning to complaints reveals—contrary to claims by policymakers and judges—that VAW, including the extortive crime of dowry, are not “petty quarrels,” but may involve starvation, poisoning, and marital rape. In an attempt to make a causal claim about the impact of complainant gender on verdicts, I utilize topical inverse regression matching, a method that leverages high-dimensional text data. I show that those who suffer from cumulative disadvantage in society may face challenges across sequential stages of seeking restitution or punitive justice through formal state institutions.

Between the Devil and the Deep Sea: Tribal Women’s Inheritance Rights in India

In recognition of their distinct culture and identity, tribal communities in India enjoy constitutionally guaranteed autonomy and self-governance, which extend to customary laws for marriage, matrimonial rights and inheritance. In contexts where the tribal customary law has denied women inheritance rights, some women have approached the courts of law. The Hindu law on inheritance specifically excludes tribal communities from its application; yet, courts have found a way to apply it by reasoning that the parties to the case were ‘sufficiently Hinduised’. This article examines Indian judicial responses to this issue, and the ramifications for the inheritance rights of tribal women. The article critiques law’s lack of imagination and inability to capture the complex dynamics of social relationships in tribal communities, in a context of their massive dispossession from tribal lands. While highlighting the distinct relationship of property, community and family in tribal communities, it examines how law could ensure that tribal women retain their tribal identity and yet secure equal inheritance rights, rather than force a trade-off between tribal identity and securing inheritance rights on grounds of ‘sufficient Hinduisation’.

An Analysis of Conservation of Biodiversity Under Indian Constitution and Judicial Response

Biodiversity is part of our daily lives and livelihood and constitutes the resources upon which families, communities, nations and future generations depend. Biodiversity can be set in a time frame so that species extinctions, the disappearance of ecological associations, or the loss of genetic variants in an extant species can be classed as loss of biodiversity. Similarly, additions to biodiversity include addition of new elements of life by mutation, by artificial breeding, by biotechnology or by ecological manipulation. A large number of factors and forces are responsible for the steep decline in the earth’s biodiversity during the last century. Most of these are caused due to tremendous increase in human population and this in turn resulted in the over exploitation of certain plant and animal resources for food, medicine, skin, fur, tusks, musk, etc., habitat loss and fragmentation, land use change and pollution. Concerns have been raised about the loss of biodiversity especially after the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held at Rio de Janeiro in 1992, where loss of biodiversity was recognized as one of the most important problem of this century. This article focuses on provisions of Indian constitution for conservation of biodiversity and also judicial response for the conservation of biodiversity.

Environmental Crimes and Judicial Response in the Context of Bangladesh

The environmental spectrum in Bangladesh is exceedingly vulnerable. The norm of environmental crimes in this country is prolific. Environmental crimes have skyrocketed over the decades and it is an area of increasing concern. This concern is not owing to its globalized nature but these green criminal activities have extensive impacts that are beyond the capacity of the justice system that comprehend and address accordingly. Hence, a question can be raised, How would criminal justice agencies, specifically the global South mitigate these alarming environmental threats? This paper takes Bangladesh's case into account and illustrates a range of examples of anthropogenic activities that are horrendously destroying ecological biodiversity and polluting the green landscape in this country. This paper also reviews these prolific crimes and environmental harms in line with the environmental law, and activities of the law enforcement agencies and environmental agencies in Bangladesh.