Publications

Understanding and Comparing Access to Justice

Year of Publication: 2022
Month of Publication: 9
Author(s): Helena Whalen-Bridge
Research Area(s): Comparative Law
Book Title: The Role of Lawyers in Access to Justice: Asian and Comparative Perspectives
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Abstract: Understanding access to justice in any jurisdiction requires identification of factors which create the dynamic in which access functions. Jurisdictions can have factors in common, but each jurisdiction has a dynamic of its own. Without an understanding of these factors and how they interact, proposed improvements in access may not accomplish much. Viewing access to justice in this way arguably allows for a clearer vision of positive change, because it acknowledges why particular changes may be difficult or unlikely. Establishing access to justice dynamics in sufficient complexity is also necessary for comparative understandings across jurisdictions, but comparative insight requires reference to an expanded set of jurisdictions, including Asia and beyond.