Navigating a million obstacles: A woman magistrate's commitment to integrity and disability inclusion in the judiciary
People with disabilities often face significant barriers in society, and the judiciary is no exception. From navigating physical spaces that lack accessible infrastructure to confronting biases about their capabilities, individuals with disabilities encounter many challenges.
Inclusivity is deeply intertwined with judicial integrity, as a transparent and ethical judiciary must reflect the diversity of the society it serves. When the judiciary is inclusive, it affirms the principle that all individuals - regardless of physical abilities - are entitled to equal opportunities and fair treatment within the legal system.
Should 11 January be designated as International Day of Judicial Independence?
On 27 March 2023, the International Association of Judges (IAJ) has proposed that the United Nations proclaim 11 January as "International Day of Judicial Independence - 1000 Robes March" to mark the brave and peaceful call of judges for an independent judiciary which all citizens of the world are entitled to. Through that initiative the IAJ underlined that, since 2015, the rule of law in Poland, like in recent years in many parts of the world, has been progressively undermined by other State powers. Successive governments have, under the guise of "reforms", introduced a number of amendments concerning the Polish judicial system in order to exert control over it in a way that facilitate the implementation of its policy agenda.
Regional Judicial Integrity Meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean
From 6 to 8 August 2024, the Regional Judicial Integrity Meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean took place in Brasilia, Brazil, bringing together judiciaries of the region to explore strategies to strengthen judicial integrity across the region and share good practices and experiences.
The event was organized by UNODC under the umbrella of the Global Judicial Integrity Network, the National High Court of Brazil (STJ) and the Superior Labour Court of Brazil (TST). The meeting also supported the implementation of roadmaps adopted by three Regional Anti-Corruption Platforms for South America and Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, which identify strengthening judicial integrity as one of the priority areas for the region.
Judge Dread: AI and Judicial Integrity
As the wheel of technological innovation spins ever faster, how will the judiciary be affected?
In critical applications of AI, the biggest questions are in how they are made, trained, tested, and used. AI is a field that combines mathematics, statistics, and computer science - often to do incredible things, but by math rather than magic. This is important, because it means that AI doesn't have human motivation: to lie, to obfuscate, to deliberately confuse. However, this also means that AI has no actual level of understanding - of what we hold dear any less than what we discard. AI does not understand the concepts of justice, fairness, or rule of law. It is, however, very good at sounding like it does. This distinction is crucial: applications such as large language models work on vast datasets, applying a probable next word or string of words in completing a sentence. This can result in cases like Avianca, wherein a lawyer asking a large language model (LLM) for relevant cases was given cases which did not exist. While this was something the lawyer could have checked, it brings to mind greater questions of what the use of AI means for the justice system.
Judicial Compliance: A governance model for managing the risk of corruption and ensuring the quality and integrity of the judiciary
Organized crime and corruption, coupled with the temptations of political power to control everything and deprive the public machinery of checks and balances, are identified as the greatest threats to judicial independence and integrity. In response to this challenging situation, the judiciary of Costa Rica has bolstered institutional capabilities and its human resources to counter corruption. It has embraced an institutional model for combating and preventing this issue through Judicial Compliance Initiative.
Judicial compliance encompasses a series of measures endorsed by the senior management of the judiciary, aimed at addressing instances of corruption and organizational fraud. These actions take a risk-based approach, encompassing prevention, identification and response to the phenomenon, ensuring that all activities and personnel actions comply with legal requirements and obligations. Guided by principles of impartiality, objectivity and independence, the objective of judicial compliance is to uphold integrity in decision-making.