The Supply of Judicial Labour: Optimising a Scarce Resource in Australia

Developed societies generate a multitude of controversies between their members, which need to be resolved fairly if society is to function well. Judicial officers play a central role in that process by hearing and determining disputes according to law, but they are costly and their long tenure entr...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Brian Opeskin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Oñati International Institute for the Sociology of Law 2017-12-01
Series:Oñati Socio-Legal Series
Online Access:http://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/852
Description
Summary:Developed societies generate a multitude of controversies between their members, which need to be resolved fairly if society is to function well. Judicial officers play a central role in that process by hearing and determining disputes according to law, but they are costly and their long tenure entrenches labour market rigidities. This is an inconvenience for modern governments, as they attempt to keep the wheels of justice turning, while facing budgetary constraints that drive them to seek ever greater cost-efficiencies. This article surveys the ways in which governments in Australia have sought to optimise the judicial labour force by creating a more flexible and cost-effective supply. The system of justice that has evolved in response to these developments is a complex one, with many complementary parts. There is no unique solution to the question of how many judicial officers society needs to quell disputes because this goal can be achieved in different ways. But great care needs to be taken to ensure that government action to find flexible sources of labour to meet the demand for judicial dispute resolution does not come at too high a price in terms of respect for the rule of law.<br /> <br />Las sociedades desarrolladas generan multitud de pol&eacute;micas entre sus miembros, y &eacute;stas deben ser solucionadas de forma justa para que la sociedad funcione bien. Los agentes judiciales desempe&ntilde;an un papel esencial en ese proceso, dado que atienden y solucionan disputas de acuerdo con el derecho, pero son agentes costosos y sus largas permanencias en el puesto perpet&uacute;an la rigidez del mercado laboral. Ello es un inconveniente para los gobernantes actuales, que intentan asegurar que el ejercicio de la justicia siga su curso, al tiempo que se enfrentan a limitaciones presupuestarias que los empujan a buscar una eficiencia en relaci&oacute;n a los costes cada vez mayor. Este art&iacute;culo estudia las maneras en las que los gobiernos de Australia han procurado optimizar la fuerza de trabajo judicial mediante la creaci&oacute;n de un suministro m&aacute;s flexible y m&aacute;s eficaz con respecto al coste. El sistema de justicia que ha evolucionado en respuesta a estos desarrollos es complejo, con muchas partes complementarias. No hay una &uacute;nica respuesta a la pregunta de cu&aacute;ntos agentes judiciales necesita la sociedad para mitigar disputas, porque este objetivo se puede conseguir de diferentes formas. Pero hace falta ser m&aacute;s prudentes para asegurar que la acci&oacute;n gubernamental centrada en encontrar fuentes de trabajo flexibles para satisfacer la demanda de resoluci&oacute;n de disputas judiciales no implique un precio demasiado alto en t&eacute;rminos de respeto al imperio de la ley.<br /><br /> <strong>DOWNLOAD THIS PAPER FROM SSRN:</strong> <a href="https://ssrn.com/abstract=2928388" target="_blank">https://ssrn.com/abstract=2928388</a><p>&nbsp;</p>
ISSN:2079-5971