"Justice delayed is justice denied" is a legal maxim. It means that if legal redress or equitable relief to an injured party is available, but is not forthcoming in a timely fashion, it is effectively the same as having no remedy at all. [1]
This principle is the basis for the right to a speedy trial and similar rights which are meant to expedite the legal system, because of the unfairness for the injured party who sustained the injury having little hope for timely and effective remedy and resolution. The phrase has become a rallying cry for legal reformers who view courts, tribunals, judges, arbitrators, administrative law judges, commissions [A] or governments as acting too slowly in resolving legal issues — either because the case is too complex, the existing system is too complex or overburdened, or because the issue or party in question lacks political favour. Individual cases may be affected by judicial hesitancy to make a decision. Statutes and court rules have tried to control the tendency; and judges may be subject to oversight and even discipline for persistent failures to decide matters timely, or accurately report their backlog. When a court takes a matter "under advisement" – awaiting the issue of a judicial opinion, order or judgement and forestalls final adjudication of a lawsuit or resolution of a motion – the issue of timeliness of the decision(s) comes into play.
There are conflicting accounts of who first noted the phrase. According to Respectfully Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations, it is attributable to William Ewart Gladstone; [2] [3] however, while Gladstone did mention the phrase during a House of Commons debate on 16 March 1868, [4] earlier occurrences of the phrase exist. [5]
Mentions of justice delayed and denied are found in Pirkei Avot: "Our Rabbis taught: ...The sword comes into the world, because of justice delayed and justice denied...". [3] [6] Nachmanides understands the advice given by Jethro in Exodus 18:22, to judge the people at all times, as suggesting that Israel needed more judges because potential litigants would otherwise suffer injustice due to their inability to find a judge to hear their case. [7]
Magna Carta of 1215, clause 40 of which reads, "To no one will we sell, to no one will we refuse or delay, right or justice." [3] [8] [B]
In 1617, upon being elevated to Lord Chancellor of England, Francis Bacon said that "Swift justice is the sweetest." [C] Another 17th-century version of the phrase is attributed to William Penn in the form "to delay Justice is Injustice". [11]
Martin Luther King Jr., used the phrase in the form "justice too long delayed is justice denied" in his "Letter from Birmingham Jail", smuggled out of prison in 1963, ascribing it to "one of our distinguished jurists". [3] [12]
The broader public policy implications are a source of concern. As Chief Justice of the United States Warren E. Burger noted in an address to the American Bar Association in 1970:
"A sense of confidence in the courts is essential to maintain the fabric of ordered liberty for a free people and three things could destroy that confidence and do incalculable damage to society: that people come to believe that inefficiency and delay will drain even a just judgment of its value; that people who have long been exploited in the smaller transactions of daily life come to believe that courts cannot vindicate their legal rights from fraud and over-reaching; that people come to believe the law – in the larger sense – cannot fulfill its primary function to protect them and their families in their homes, at their work, and on the public streets." [13]
Lack of a speedy and effective resolution (amidst a bewildering multiplicity of statutes and forums with overlapping jurisdiction) can cause unwarranted delay. It has been observed that it creates a sense of frustration and unfairness, and a feeling of a lack of efficacy, which adversely affects employee morale and labor relations in the federal sector. [14]
"Delays in the law are hateful" –In diem vivere in lege sunt detestabilis– is a Latin legal maxim. [15] On the other hand, "No delay [in law] is long concerning the death of a man," is another Latin lawyer's aphorism. [15] And, "It is not to be imagined, that the King will be guilty of vexatious delays." [16]
For participants in the justice system, the question of whether justice was denied is whether delay is avoidable or disproportionate, or unavoidable and necessary. Proportionality is integral to such interpretations. Time taken to resolve the dispute is critical. Alternative dispute resolution, case management systems, and trial and motion practice are all integral to such determinations. [D]
Prompt decision-making is part of "Judging 101", and is covered in every judicial handbook. [9] "Judges should endeavour to perform all judicial duties, including the delivery of reserved judgments, with reasonable promptness." [17] To a similar effect in Canada: "A judge shall dispose of all judicial matters promptly...." [18]
Applicable to federal judges and effective March 12, 2019, the Code of Conduct for United States Judges elucidates "the ethical canons that apply to federal judges and provides guidance on their performance of official duties and engagement in a variety of outside activities." Beyond general exhortations, it has little to say about delay in dispositions:
"Canon 3: A Judge Should Perform the Duties of the Office Fairly, Impartially and Diligently
"The duties of judicial office take precedence over all other activities. The judge should perform those duties with respect for others, and should not engage in behavior that is harassing, abusive, prejudiced, or biased. The judge should adhere to the following standards:
"(A) Adjudicative Responsibilities.
"(1) A judge should be faithful to, and maintain professional competence in, the law and should not be swayed by partisan interests, public clamor, or fear of criticism.
"(2) A judge should hear and decide matters assigned, unless disqualified, and should maintain order and decorum in all judicial proceedings. ...
"(5) A judge should dispose promptly of the business of the court." [19]
As a commentator for the American Judicature Society noted:
"Unjustifiable delay in court proceedings, particularly in deciding cases, can have a significant impact on the parties and reflects adversely on the judicial system. Under Canon 3B(8)of the 1990 model code, a judge is required to "dispose of all judicial matters promptly, efficiently and fairly." Commentary to the 1990 model code reminds judges that "in disposing of matters promptly, efficiently and fairly, a judge must demonstrate due regard for the rights of the parties to be heard," while a comment to the 2007 model code cautions that "the duty to hear all proceedings with patience and courtesy is not inconsistent with the duty imposed . . . to dispose promptly of the business of the court. Judges can be efficient and businesslike while being patient and deliberate."
To ensure prompt and efficient disposition of cases, commentary to the code advises judges to:
- seek the necessary docket time, court staff, expertise, and resources,
- monitor and supervise cases,
- devote adequate time to judicial duties,
- be punctual in attending court,
- expeditiously decide matters under submission, and
- take reasonable measures to ensure that court officials, litigants, and their lawyers cooperate to that end." [20]
Speedy justice in the findings and within the confines of the case, facts and the law is a stated goal of many legal systems. [21] Conversely, "[D]epriving quick and certain justice to the litigants ... reinforces the negative images of the judicial system...." [22]
A long list of potential excuses for extended decisional slow motion are disallowed. [E] And in weighing the wrongfulness of the delay, there are a multiplicity of factors that may come into play. [F]
Passed in 1990, the United States Code, Title 28, §476(a)(3) has a "novel process of making public the names of judges" who let cases go too long without decisions or judgment. [9] Reports must be filed if motions and trials are in submission and have been pending more than six months without decision; and cases that have not been ended within three years of filing. [23] See Civil Justice Reform Act, which tries to deal with lifetime tenured judges, judicial efficiency, judicial independence, separation of powers and legislative oversight.
The Province of Quebec, Canada, has a flat statutory statement mandating six months as a requirement for ordinary civil actions. It states: 465. "A judgment on the merits must be rendered within six months after the case is taken under advisement, or within four months after the case is taken under advisement in a small claims matter." [24]
In Canada, the six months has been treated as a mere aspirational guideline or suggestion. According to the Canadian Judicial Council, even when it took it seriously, the consequence was "a slap on the wrist." [9] In one misconduct claim, a Quebec judge had gone over the 6-month limit in five cases. [9] [25] When the Council proceed up the judge's chain of command, it was handled administratively. The chief judge complained, and ipso facto the judgments appeared. A simple warning was issued, and the judge retired. [9]
In Louisiana there exist overlapping statutes and court rules, which require that cases be decided within 30 days of submission. They require the filing of a report, if that standard is exceeded. Untimely decisions and misstatements or failure to document cases may subject a judge to judicial discipline. [26]
In some states, court rules have been adopted requiring that delays in making decisions or completing cases must be reported. For example, in Michigan the so-called "910 Report" must be filed after a matter is under advisement for more than 90 days. It requires the judge to file a certified statement with the court administrator specifying the case, the matters taken under advisement, the reasons for the delay, and the estimated time of arrival for the cure to the problem. [27]
In Indiana, "Trial Rule 53.1 and Ind. Trial Rule 53.2 are officially titled "Failure to rule on motion" and "Time for holding issue under advisement; delay of entering a judgment but are commonly known as the 'lazy judge' rules." Under those rules, the trial court has 90 days in which to render its decision; and that time can only be extended by order of the Indiana Supreme Court. [28]
A Canadian Barrister wrote that "Delay in rendering reasons for judgment is the #1 disease afflicting judges." [9] Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of British Columbia, John Owen Wilson, [29] wrote about delay in the delivery of judgments that:
"The public has a right to expect of a judge decisiveness....
"Litigants expect, and rightfully expect, that the judge will soon relieve them from the agony of uncertainty that prevails until judgment is delivered.
"That is not to say that it is better to be quick than right.... The aim is to be both quick and right." [30]
Justice Wilson flatly stated: "[A] month's delay is normal. Two months delay is long. And three months is too long." [30]
Efficiency in the making of judicial decisions — and the avoidance of undue hesitancy while maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the decision-making process — implicates law and ethics. When faced with inordinate delay, a litigant and lawyer are placed between "a rock and a hard place". There is a concern about retaliation and provoking a shoot the messenger reaction. [9] There is little if any remedy, and there is a risk that even an inquiry will provoke an adverse result. [9]
The Latin legal maxim Actus curiæ neminem gravabit, meaning that the act of the Court shall prejudice no one, becomes applicable when a situation is protected because the Court is under an obligation to undo the wrong done to a party by the Court's own act. Thus, the court's delay should not prejudice the rights of a party, [31] [32] it being a well settled principle. [33] Subsequent events ought not to frustrate a well-established cause of action. [G]
As was written by Justice William O. Douglas in Parker v Ellis dissenting opinion and citing Mitchell v. Overman, 103 U.S. 62, 26 L.Ed. 369, 103 U.S. at pages 64–6:
"But the principle is deep in our jurisprudence and was stated long ago in Mitchell v. Overman ...
"'(T)he rule established by the general concurrence of the American and English courts is, that where the delay in rendering a judgment or a decree arises from the act of the court, that is, where the delay has been caused either for its convenience, or by the multiplicity or press of business, either the intricacy of the questions involved, or of any other cause not attributable to the laches of the parties, the judgment or the decree may be entered retrospectively, as of a time when it should or might have been entered up. In such cases, upon the maxim actus curiae neminem gravabit, which has been well said to be founded in right and good sense, and to afford a safe and certain guide for the administration of justice,-it is the duty of the court to see that the parties shall not suffer by the delay. A nunc pro tunc order should be granted or refused, as justice may require in view of the circumstances of the particular case.'
"It is the fault of the courts, not Parker's fault, that final adjudication in this case was delayed until after he had served his sentence. Justice demands that he be given the relief he deserves. Since the custody requirement, if any, was satisfied when we took jurisdiction of the case, I would grant the relief as of that date."
This is no more than the application of the equitable principle, and well-known aphorism, that "Not only must Justice be done; it must also be seen to be done", [35] which in turn is related to the equitable maxims, "Equity sees that as done what ought to be done" and "Equity abhors a forfeiture".
In Bleak House , Charles Dickens wrote about extraordinarily protracted proceedings in the Victorian English Court of Chancery. He used as illustrated "a synonym of delay" which yielded only disastrous consequences for the participants. The estate's court case goes on for 12 years, for reasons no one understands, and the entire estate is itself dissipated in the battle. As one writer notes:
In the Victorian era, the Court of Chancery was a synonym of delay. In Bleak House Dickens invented a fictional legal case named Jarndyce and Jarndyce in order to caricature the legal system of England, and the iniquity of Chancery chiefly takes the form of procrastination: "Jarndyce and Jarndyce drones on. This scarecrow of a suit has, in course of time, become so complicated, that no man alive knows what it means" (BH1 16). As a consequence of this protraction, many characters involved in Jarndyce and Jarndyce are tortured by being held in painful anxiety" one goes insane and another's mind is consumed with "corroding care, suspense, distrust, and doubt" (BH 630)." [36]
In the preface to Bleak House, Dickens cites two Chancery cases as especial inspirations, one of which was a "friendly suit":
At the present moment (August, 1853) there is a suit before the court which was commenced nearly twenty years ago, in which from thirty to forty counsel have been known to appear at one time, in which costs have been incurred to the amount of seventy thousand pounds, which is A FRIENDLY SUIT, and which is (I am assured) no nearer to its termination now than when it was begun. There is another well-known suit in Chancery, not yet decided, which was commenced before the close of the last century and in which more than double the amount of seventy thousand pounds has been swallowed up in costs.
Based on an 1853 letter of Dickens, [37] the first of these cases has been identified [38] [39] as the dispute over the will of Charles Day, a boot blacking manufacturer who died in 1836. Proceedings were commenced in 1837 and not concluded until at least 1854.
The case of Jennens v Jennens formed part of the inspiration for the Jarndyce and Jarndyce case at the centre of the plot of Bleak House by Charles Dickens. [40] of Acton, Suffolk. [41] [42]
The second of these cases is generally identified [38] as the dispute over the will of the "Acton Miser" William Jennens [H] . Jennens made his money loaning money to gamblers and was Britain's richest man at the time of his death in 1798, but he died without a will, aged 97. According to the BBC QI series, Jennens vs Jennens commenced in 1798 and was abandoned in 1915 (117 years later) when the legal fees had exhausted the Jennens estate of funds (£2,000,000(equivalent to about £265,927,800 in 2023)). [41] [42] Thus it had been ongoing for 55 years when Bleak House was published. In fact, the dispute about Jennens' estate was not a single law suit; multiple unsuccessful claims were brought over many years seeking part of his estate. The estate was not exhausted of funds; the fortune went to already-wealthy relatives.[ citation needed ]
Over the years, even the existence of a right to appeal – in criminal and even civil appeals – has been characterized by U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Josiah Brewer as an attack on justice and trial courts, and the ingraining of "justice delayed is justice denied". As he stated: "One thing should always be borne in mind. Whatever the sifting process of successive appeals may accomplish in ascertaining the exact truth, justice delayed is often justice denied. The early end of every litigation should be one of the great objects of all judicial proceedings." [43] The Chicago Evening Post countered that the right to an appeal is a surety of getting the right legal result, and no attack at all on the sanctity of trials. It says this is not a proper occasion to invoke the maxim. It urges that but for the championing of a United States Supreme Court Justice, the argument would be dead on arrival. [43] [ relevant? ]
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Oregon's closing of courts – including family courts that deal with immediate needs of distressed families – has sparked protests and application of the sobriquet. [44]
Common law is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on precedent—judicial rulings made in previous similar cases. The presiding judge determines which precedents to apply in deciding each new case.
In the field of jurisprudence, equity is the particular body of law, developed in the English Court of Chancery, with the general purpose of providing legal remedies for cases wherein the common law is inflexible and cannot fairly resolve the disputed legal matter. Conceptually, equity was part of the historical origins of the system of common law of England, yet is a field of law separate from common law, because equity has its own unique rules and principles, and was administered by courts of equity.
A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties against one or more parties in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used with respect to a civil action brought by a plaintiff who requests a legal remedy or equitable remedy from a court. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint or else risk default judgment. If the plaintiff is successful, judgment is entered in favor of the plaintiff, and the Court may impose the legal and/or equitable remedies available against the defendant (respondent). A variety of court orders may be issued in connection with or as part of the judgment to enforce a right, award damages or restitution, or impose a temporary or permanent injunction to prevent an act or compel an act. A declaratory judgment may be issued to prevent future legal disputes.
Maxims of equity are legal maxims that serve as a set of general principles or rules which are said to govern the way in which equity operates. They tend to illustrate the qualities of equity, in contrast to the common law, as a more flexible, responsive approach to the needs of the individual, inclined to take into account the parties' conduct and worthiness. They were developed by the English Court of Chancery and other courts that administer equity jurisdiction, including the law of trusts. Although the most fundamental and time honored of the maxims, listed on this page, are often referred to on their own as the 'maxims of equity' or 'the equitable maxims', it cannot be said that there is a definitive list of them. Like other kinds of legal maxims or principles, they were originally, and sometimes still are, expressed in Latin.
In law, a judgment is a decision of a court regarding the rights and liabilities of parties in a legal action or proceeding. Judgments also generally provide the court's explanation of why it has chosen to make a particular court order.
The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid a slow pace of change and possible harshness of the common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over all matters of equity, including trusts, land law, the estates of lunatics and the guardianship of infants.
In law, a summary judgment, also referred to as judgment as a matter of law or summary disposition, is a judgment entered by a court for one party and against another party summarily, i.e., without a full trial. Summary judgments may be issued on the merits of an entire case, or on discrete issues in that case. The formulation of the summary judgment standard is stated in somewhat different ways by courts in different jurisdictions. In the United States, the presiding judge generally must find there is "no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." In England and Wales, the court rules for a party without a full trial when "the claim, defence or issue has no real prospect of success and there is no other compelling reason why the case or issue should be disposed of at a trial."
Bleak House is a novel by English author Charles Dickens, first published as a 20-episode serial between 12 March 1852 and 12 September 1853. The novel has many characters and several subplots, and is told partly by the novel's heroine, Esther Summerson, and partly by an omniscient narrator. At the centre of Bleak House is a long-running legal case in the Court of Chancery, Jarndyce and Jarndyce, which comes about because a testator has written several conflicting wills. In a preface to the 1853 first edition, Dickens said there were many actual precedents for his fictional case. One such was probably Thellusson v Woodford, in which a will read in 1797 was contested and not determined until 1859. Though many in the legal profession criticised Dickens's satire as exaggerated, Bleak House helped support a judicial reform movement that culminated in the enactment of legal reform in the 1870s.
In United States law, a motion is a procedural device to bring a limited, contested issue before a court for decision. It is a request to the judge to make a decision about the case. Motions may be made at any point in administrative, criminal or civil proceedings, although that right is regulated by court rules which vary from place to place. The party requesting the motion is the moving party or movant. The party opposing the motion is the nonmoving party or nonmovant.
In the history of the courts of England and Wales, the Judicature Acts were a series of acts of Parliament, beginning in the 1870s, which aimed to fuse the hitherto split system of courts of England and Wales. The first two acts were the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873 and the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1875, with a further series of amending acts.
Jarndyce and Jarndyce is a fictional probate case in Bleak House (1852–53) by Charles Dickens, progressing in the English Court of Chancery. The case is a central plot device in the novel and has become a byword for seemingly interminable legal proceedings.
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure govern civil procedure in United States district courts. They are the companion to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Rules promulgated by the United States Supreme Court pursuant to the Rules Enabling Act become part of the FRCP unless, within seven months, the United States Congress acts to veto them. The Court's modifications to the rules are usually based upon recommendations from the Judicial Conference of the United States, the federal judiciary's internal policy-making body.
The Delaware Court of Chancery is a court of equity in the U.S. state of Delaware. It is one of Delaware's three constitutional courts, along with the Supreme Court and Superior Court. Since 2018, the court consists of seven judges. The court is known for being a hub for corporate governance litigation in the United States, as two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies are incorporated in Delaware. It is among the preeminent business courts in the world.
Sources of law are the origins of laws, the binding rules that enable any state to govern its territory. The terminology was already used in Rome by Cicero as a metaphor referring to the "fountain" of law. Technically, anything that can create, change, or cancel any right or law is considered a source of law.
Mehram Ali v. Federation Pakistan is considered to be an important judgment of Supreme Court of Pakistan and marked the importance of the independence of a judiciary, particularly in reference to the Article 175 of the Constitution of Pakistan.
In criminal law, the right to a speedy trial is a human right under which it is asserted that a government prosecutor may not delay the trial of a criminal suspect arbitrarily and indefinitely. Otherwise, the power to impose such delays would effectively allow prosecutors to send anyone to jail for an arbitrary length of time without trial, expressed as the maxim Justice delayed is justice denied.
Stern v. Marshall, 564 U.S. 462 (2011), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that a bankruptcy court, as a non-Article III court lacked constitutional authority under Article III of the United States Constitution to enter a final judgment on a state law counterclaim that is not resolved in the process of ruling on a creditor's proof of claim, even though Congress purported to grant such statutory authority under 28 U.S.C. § 157(b)2(C). The case drew an unusual amount of interest because the petitioner was the estate of former Playboy Playmate and celebrity Anna Nicole Smith. Smith died in 2007, before the Court decided the case, which her estate lost.
In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and interpreting law. Although appellate courts have existed for thousands of years, common law countries did not incorporate an affirmative right to appeal into their jurisprudence until the 19th century.
United States v. Throckmorton is an 1878 decision of the U.S. Supreme Court on civil procedure, specifically res judicata, in cases heard at equity. A unanimous Court affirmed an appeal of a decision by the District Court for California upholding a Mexican-era land claim, holding that collateral estoppel bars untimely motions to set aside the verdict where the purportedly fraudulent evidence has already been considered and a decision reached. In the opinion it distinguished between that kind of fraud, which it called intrinsic, and extrinsic fraud, in which deceptive actions exterior to the proceeding prevented a party, or potential party, to the action from becoming aware of the possibility they could vindicate their rights in court.
Graver v. Faurot,, is a case decided in 1896 by the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit on the issues of res judicata and fraud on the court. The Seventh Circuit had heard the case the preceding year but, like the district court that had previously heard it, was unable to decide which of two recent U.S. Supreme Court cases was controlling. After the Supreme Court denied certiorari to resolve the issue, on procedural grounds, the Seventh Circuit resolved the case itself.
But above all, if we be just men, we shall go forward in the name of truth and right, and bear this in mind, that when the case is ripe and the hour has come, justice delayed is justice denied.
It is an old maxim that justice delayed is justice denied and another might be added, perhaps equally true, that justice bought is valueless.; and "Conference in Liverpool.—Mercantile Law and the Judicial System". The Manchester Guardian . No. 2, 533. Manchester: Printed and published for Taylor, Garnett, & Co., No. 4, Warren-street, New Market Place, by Jeremiah Garnett, of No. 10, Mount Broughton, Higher Broughton, in the parish of Manchester. 16 April 1853. p. 6. OCLC 265105754.
If, as an eminent jurist once said, justice delayed is often justice denied, it must be an object worthy of all effort to procure local courts, where speedy justice can be obtained; [...].
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ignored (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Speedy justice refers to the speediness along with prudence and wisdom observed in the final disposition of cases.
Jenk.Cent. 118 "Where a delay in an action is the act of the court, neither party shall suffer for it."
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ignored (help) Garner, Bryan A.; Black, Henry Campbell (1999). Actus Curiæ neminem gravabit (7th ed.). St. Paul, Minnesota: West Publishing. p. 1616. ISBN 0-314-22864-0.{{cite book}}
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(help)To stem the spread of COVID-19 and protect public health, Oregon's chief justice put restrictions on all court operations until she orders otherwise.