Reform of the Belgian Justice System: Changes to the Role of Jurisdiction Chief, the Empowerment of Local Managers

Emilie Dupont and Frédéric Schoenaers
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Emilie Dupont: Centre of Research and Sociological Interventions, University of Liege, 4000 Liege, Belgium
Frédéric Schoenaers: Centre of Research and Sociological Interventions, University of Liege, 4000 Liege, Belgium

Laws, 2017, vol. 7, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: The last waves of reform that affected, and continue to affect, the Belgian legal system led to an injunction for increased responsibility on the part of local managers, the jurisdiction chiefs. This tendency was initiated in the 1990s, with the introduction of a managerial logic into the legal sphere, whereby local initiatives took precedence in the absence of any clear and binding direction. The 2014 reform project, through its three constituent pillars, led to the strengthening of this logic, to the point where it became an important subject. The jurisdiction chiefs were therefore confronted with a new type of responsibility in that they became responsible for the dissemination of managerial discourse within their local body, for the implementation of change, and, consequently, for the success of this change, while at the same time, being confronted by a state and by political authorities that preferred to take a back-seat role. By observing, from an exploratory perspective, the developments caused by this transformational dynamic with regard to the role and function of the jurisdiction chiefs, our contribution highlights the wide range of receptions and appropriations of the reform project, and the concepts supporting the founding trio of pillars, based on five emerging, empirically-established subjects.

Keywords: justice reform; empowerment; management; jurisdiction chief and local manager (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D78 E61 E62 F13 F42 F68 K0 K1 K2 K3 K4 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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