{"id":138,"date":"2015-03-10T18:07:56","date_gmt":"2015-03-10T22:07:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.un.org\/ruleoflaw\/?page_id=138"},"modified":"2019-02-19T16:32:20","modified_gmt":"2019-02-19T21:32:20","slug":"informal-justice","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/ruleoflaw\/thematic-areas\/access-to-justice-and-rule-of-law-institutions\/informal-justice\/","title":{"rendered":"Informal Justice"},"content":{"rendered":"

Informal mechanisms are an important part of delivering justice in both rural and urban areas worldwide. In the Declaration of the High-level Meeting on the Rule of Law, Member States acknowledged that informal justice mechanisms, when in accordance with international human rights law, play a positive role in dispute resolution, and that everyone, particularly women and those belonging to vulnerable groups, should enjoy full and equal access to these justice mechanisms

[para. 15]. Informal systems are also often referred to as \u201ctraditional\u201d, \u201cindigenous\u201d, \u201ccustomary\u201d or \u201cnon-state\u201d justice systems. Estimates are that in many developing countries around 80% of cases are resolved through such mechanisms. Informal justice systems tend to address a wide range of issues of significant concern to the people, including personal security and local crime; protection of land, property and livestock; resolution of family and community disputes; and protection of entitlements, such as access to public services.<\/p>\n

A Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ joint study (United Nations Development Programme<\/a>, United Nations Children’s Fund<\/a> and Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ WOMEN<\/a>) on informal justice systems analyses the characteristics of these mechanisms in all regions of the world, their linkages with the formal system, and their human rights implications, with a view to identifying programming opportunities and challenges.<\/p>\n

Relevant Documents and Links<\/h2>\n