Abstract :
Over the last two decades, there has been a proliferation of indicators designed to
measure and quantify the delivery of justice services. This paper describes the
range of justice system indicator instruments that are currently in use and the data
sources and measures that they employ. The authors identify 53 instruments assessing
various aspects of the rule of law and a subset of 31 instruments that specifically
address the operation of law enforcement agencies, judicial systems,
corrections, and informal justice mechanisms. This review, conducted for the
United Nations as part of the Rule of Law Indicators Project, considers the
strengths and shortcomings of existing justice indicators in the light of common
challenges facing countries recovering from conflict, including: political instability,
problems of legitimacy and corruption; safety and security; and, challenges relating
to capacity and infrastructure. We conclude with suggestions for supplementing
existing indicators to develop measures that can inform efforts to enhance the rule
of law in post-conflict settings.
