2015

Balancing The Justice System

Ministry of Justice and Solicitor General

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Introduction
The justice system is under increasing pressure from several sources. We are faced with a unique opportunity in responding to that pressure. We can continue to respond as individual program areas and Divisions within the
Ministry, focused on the narrow legislative and constitutional sources of our respective authority and duties, or we can create a new framework and process that will bring a systematic and integrated approach to the administration of justice, and balance to the allocation of resources within that system. Such an approach would be centered on the Ministry Vision - to create the most innovative
“The mission of the Ministry of and accessible citizen-centred justice system in Canada.
Justice and Solicitor General is to ensure Albertans have safe
The historical development of the role of the Attorney General communities and an accessible, and Justice Department illustrate the ad hoc development of effective and innovative justice the justice system. From its inception in 1905, the scope of the system. We accomplish this by both the office of the Attorney General and the Justice working with partners to provide a
Department have evolved over time as new duties and continuum of services to support responsibilities have been added. This expansion has not been
Albertans and the Government of planned or coordinated in response to an overarching goal or
Alberta, and by fostering an objective. Rather, it is a series of individual responses to environment that values service changing circumstances, emerging opportunities or challenges. excellence.” The relationship of the Ministry of Justice and the Solicitor
- 2015-25 JSG Strategic Map
General has also changed repeatedly. The functions associated with what is now the role of the Solicitor General were a part of the Justice Department until they were transferred to a separate department in 1973. These departments were merged again in 1992, separated in 2001, and reunited most recently in 2012. 1
The following description of the state of the justice system in the United Kingdom is applicable in many respects to the current situation in Alberta: the United Kingdom’s justice system (from which Canada’s system originated)
“was never actually designed. The system we have today is the result of years of accretion, ad-hoc process on top of ad-hoc process, letter by letter, form by form.” 2
The resulting structure has resulted in the development of “silos” – individual areas of responsibility which operate in many ways independently, and sometimes at cross purposes to each other. That natural tendency has been exacerbated by the constitutional and legal obligations of independence that govern many aspects of the work of the Ministry, including the judicial, prosecutorial, and law enforcement functions. While that independence remains an imperative obligation, fostering a culture that emphasizes interdependence is critical in ensuring an integrated and balanced approach to policy, program development and resource allocation.
External factors, such as dramatic population growth coupled with significant expansion in the volume and complexity of legislation and common law place further pressures on the system. Failure to undertake a
1

Much of this history is cogently summarized in Alberta Justice and Attorney General, available online through the Archives
Society of Alberta at http://www.albertaonrecord.ca/alberta-justice-and-attorney-general-004
2
“Mapping New Ideas for the Digital Justice System”, available online at https://gds.blog.gov.uk/2015/08/18/mapping-newideas-for-the-digital-justice-system-2/

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systematic and coordinated response to these and other pressures has resulted in imbalanced resource distribution and impaired access to justice for Albertans.
The broad goal of the Balancing the Justice System initiative is to increase access to justice by providing a framework based on the principles of systems thinking and citizen-centred design that will enable a collaborative, integrated, adaptable, efficient, and effective justice system. A framework based on these two principles will ensure the needs of the public are met efficiently and effectively, increasing satisfaction with the system on the part of the public, employees and other stakeholders. Duplication of efforts will be minimized and relationships within the Ministry and between other partners will be strengthened. In other words, the justice system will become a true system, rather than a collection of related but uncoordinated components.
A more detailed exploration of the pressures experienced by the justice system and the theory between the two principles of systems theory and citizen-centred design can be found in the compendium paper: Balancing the
Justice System: A systems thinking, citizen centred approach.

Putting the Public First: A Citizen-Centred Approach
The Action Committee on Access to Justice in Civil and Family found that the administration of justice is viewed, determined and built from the point of view of those who work in the system,
● ● ● rather than from the perspective of the people who need to use the system. 3
Justice systems and other service-based systems around the world are moving
“Putting the citizen first away from this practice towards a citizen-centred business model, one which means tailoring what an emphasizes functions performed rather than specific program areas. organisation does and
Integrated services are brought to the client through one contact person/point in a responsive, adaptable and timely manner. how it delivers services

to suit what its citizens

It is important to note that a citizen-centred approach does not mean giving want, as much as it can citizens everything they ask for. This would not be practical or even possible within its own as there are competing needs and wants from the public. Further, safety considerations may limit how user needs are met. Instead, as the National constraints.” Health Service of Wales (NHS Wales) states, this principle is about:
● ● ●
... a corporate attitude of mind which puts the interests of the citizen first, before the interests of the organisation… Putting the citizen first means tailoring what an organisation does and how it delivers services to suit what its citizens want, as much as it can within its own constraints. It means the ability to look at what it delivers from the viewpoint of the citizen. 4
Having clients as the centre of a business/system’s approach, putting their needs above the interests of the organization, ensures: 5
• Increased client satisfaction as their needs are better met;
• A more holistic, seamless experience;
3

Action Committee on Access to Justice in Civil and Family Matters. (2013). Access to Civil & Family Justice: A Roadmap for Change. p. 7: http://www.cfcj-fcjc.org/sites/default/files/docs/2013/AC_Report_English_Final.pdf
4
NHS Wales. (2010). Citizen Centred Goverance Principles: Making Sense of Them: A Governance Good Practice Guide. P.
3 http://www.wales.nhs.uk/governance-emanual/citizen-centred-governance-principles
5
Alberta Human Services, p. 6-7

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•
•
•
•
•

Timely access to more appropriate services;
Improved communication and information sharing;
Increased confidence and trust in the system;
A more positive environment for employees and partners; and
Greater overall job satisfaction.

Systems Thinking
The Action Committee’s report on access to justice offers a principle for systems thinking, “Collaborate and
Coordinate,” as a solution to siloes in justice systems and their barriers to access. The principle refers to the need to be aware of, and collaborate and coordinate across and within, jurisdictions (national, provincial, territorial, regional and municipal), and across and within the sectors of the justice system (civil, family, early dispute resolution, courts, judges, lawyers, police, Crown prosecution, court administration, academia and the public). 6
Taking a systems approach enables the justice system and its parts to be aware of and understand the system’s overarching purpose, all its parts, and how each part works towards and together to achieve that purpose. The benefits of this big picture outlook include:
• Cohesion between the parts (a shared purpose and interest in achieving that purpose) which leads to a solid platform for efficient and effective administration of justice;
• Purposeful thought towards intended and unintended consequences of decisions by an area or group of areas on the system;
• Stronger communication, collaboration and consultation
Police
between the parts to achieve the overarching purpose;
Dispute
• Awareness of what other areas are
Law Reform
Resolution
and Courts doing, how they can help each other, and how to plan for any consequences that actions in any part may have elsewhere in the system;
• Protection of the necessary
Corrections
Prosecutors
Justice
independences of parts of the justice system by instilling that larger picture viewpoint; • Minimization of duplication of efforts;
NGOs and
Public
• Shared and/or integrated resources; other Security
Stakeholders
• More appropriate responses are implemented from the start, saving
Legal Aid and
Lawyers
time, money and unintended consequences; • Minimization of regional disparities
Figure 1: The Justice System and inconsistencies; and
• A more sustainable and effective system. 6

Action Committee, p. 7

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Currently, ministerial programs and services are not equally available across the province. 7 Rural areas, in particular, often have little to no access to programs, services, or the resources to develop them. Programs and services that are available across the province are often inconsistent in their delivery. A systems approach highlights these gaps and allows them to be better addressed.
In other words, systems thinking will help provide citizens and other users with the most effective and efficient experience through the justice system. Becoming more effective and efficient equates to better access to justice for all that need it. It also means justice system employees and other stakeholders become better equipped to do their jobs in a less stressful environment. Public confidence in the justice system would also improve. A Citizen-Centred, Systems Thinking Approach to Balancing the Justice System

The combination of the two principles above leads to a balanced system. A balanced justice system is a responsive, integrated, sustainable and flexible system. It takes a collaborative approach that considers and includes other perspectives on decisions that impact the system. It recognizes that action or inaction in any one part may have a ripple effect on its other parts. However, this knowledge does not create a risk adverse environment. Instead, it is tolerant and encouraging of experimentation, especially when decisions to explore different approaches are backed with evidence and evaluation. A balanced system provides a unified vision, and clear and attainable guidance for service delivery. A balanced system instills proportionality in its resource allocation and is aware that it is a part of a bigger system; it utilizes the expertise and resources from the bigger system appropriately.
The balanced justice system is focused on Albertans’ needs. Services, whether they are provided by the ministry, stakeholders and partners, other levels of government and jurisdictions, or community service providers, should be available to citizens as needed. With no set entry point,
A balanced justice system is a
Albertans should be able to enter and interact with the system responsive, integrated, as needed, at any time or place. This model is prevention and sustainable and flexible diversion focused, where a continuum of interconnected programs and services are accessible, seamless, and delivered system. It takes a collaboratively. collaborative approach that

focuses on the needs of its citizens and considers and includes other perspectives on decisions that impact the system. In order to achieve this balanced system, the Balancing the
Justice System initiative proposes the development of a new framework, or paradigm shift, based on these two key principles. The framework would provide codes of behaviour derived from these two principles that would guide all Ministry decisions and the evolution of the system. A preliminary list of such codes include:

7

Alberta Justice and Attorney General. (2011). The Resolution Options Policy framework for Alberta Justice. Government of
Alberta. p. 5.

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Systems Thinking and Citizen-Centred principles: 8

1) Begin with the End – Policy, program and other business planning and decisions should begin by asking
‘what is the purpose of the whole (the justice system), and does this idea/decision help get us there in the best way possible?’
2) Put the Public First. However it is phrased, the goal of any justice system is to provide justice to its citizens. True justice is preventative first – build safer communities so crime and other conflicts do not occur in the first place. However, when they do occur, justice is a fair, equal and accessible resolution of the conflict for all involved. What does the public need from us to ensure this end result?
3) Consider the Environment. – Systems thinking involves not only looking at its own end goal but at the larger system it is a part of. What is changing in the environment that needs to be considered?
4) Involve all Stakeholders. In order to put the public first, they need to be involved in the early stages of design, where possible. “(B)eware of the paternalistic ‘we know what’s best for them’ attitude.” 9 Other stakeholders, such as NGOs and academics, that are affected and/or have wisdom should be involved when and however possible.
5) Consider, Coordinate, and Communicate. With all areas, whenever possible. Externally, health, mental health, education, poverty, homelessness, municipal affairs, federal affairs, and so on, are all interconnected with the justice system. Police, Crown, Civil and family law professionals, judiciary and so on are all interconnected within the justice system and to the broader system. Putting the citizens first means we need to use each other’s resources and wisdom to achieve the best result. It means, when we have a project, policy or other decision we want to plan and then implement, we consider its impact on all areas, coordinate to see what others are doing or share what we are doing and communicate throughout planning, implementation and evaluation.
6) Prevention over Reaction. If the Alberta Justice System is truly aware of itself as a whole and of the larger system it is a part of, it will foresee potential problems and successes and take the necessary steps to accomplish the best end result rather than waiting for problems to happen and reacting after the fact to correct them.
7) Be Comprehensive, Flexible, Adaptive and Responsive. There is no one answer. Each citizen has his/her own unique story and needs from the system. A citizen-centred, systems thinking system is aware of this and the variables that surround clients and the system and can adapt and respond accordingly. 8) Proportionality. Putting the citizen first and being aware of the whole means providing pathways to resolution that are proportionate to the need. A balanced system supplies proportionate resources and provides proportionate responses.
9) Embrace Technology. It will help with the implementation of a fruitful systems thinking, citizen-centred approach. 10) Measure, Try, Measure, Repeat. Measure, research and evaluate. Truly effective systems thinking, and systems administration is not possible without qualitative and quantitative date on what is happening around the system and within the system. Part of putting the citizen first is researching what their needs are and how other jurisdictions have met them with success and failure. Evidence –based decisions are stronger than reactionary decisions.
11) Be Innovative and Experimental. Do not be afraid of taking risks. A healthy, systems thinking environment is supportive of innovation and experimentation when based on evidence and evaluation.

8

Adapted from Alberta Justice and Attorney General, Alberta Human Services’ CCISD Model, Haines, NHS Wales and
Action Committee.
9
NHS Wales, 4

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Next Steps
The Balancing the Justice System Initiative proposes the creation of a project to fully develop the abovementioned framework and usable tools to guide Ministry decision-making. The framework and tools would help evolve the system into an integrated, citizen-centred, accessible justice system and help ensure that new initiatives are developed and assessed within this new framework. They would also assist divisions in evaluating their impact on the larger system.
All areas of the justice system are equally important and therefore should be governed by the framework. This includes areas that do not provide programs or services or have direct contact with the public. A truly systemwide approach mandates that all components of the system are involved and considered and all components involve and consider others. The principle of putting the needs of the public first means those needs are considered at all levels, including non-program/service areas.
At least two levels of assessment would be carried out to help develop the framework. The first level of assessment would be a Results Chain which would determine the multiple goals for the Ministry and each area’s contributions to those goals. This would help solidify the understanding of the overarching goal and purpose of the justice system. It would also enable divisions to examine whether and how their own objectives (subpurposes) align with the overarching system goals.
The second assessment would examine integrated processes by investigating:
• Who provides input to our process;
• What do they give us;
• What do we do;
• What do we produce;
• Who receives it;
• How do we measure all of this?
The investigation would determine what the framework would look like in action for each of the ministry’s divisions. Implementation of these principles might look different for program and policy focused areas versus those that provide corporate support. Resulting frameworks and tools would include:
1) A conceptual framework to guide business activities and behaviour (such as budget, new initiatives and policies) so they align with the Results Chain.
2) An operational framework for assessing the potential impact of decisions. This could be applicable for resourcing, operational processes, and processes related to just one area on a Results Chain.
3) A checklist for determining collaboration, consultation and communication with other ministry and nonministry stakeholders.
The next phase would also include the development of an evaluation model to determine whether the proposed changes are achieving the intended outcomes and whether there are any unintended outcomes. Performance measurement allows government to focus on the results achieved with its resources, rather than just on the amount of resources allocated. This means measuring the impact of changes on the public and the system to determine and analyze effectiveness. Current measures will be assessed, gaps identified and new measures developed when applicable.

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