Editing Justice (section)

==Ideals and standards==

===Equality and Equality before the law===
{{Main|Equal opportunity}}
In political theory, liberalism includes two traditional elements: liberty and equality. Most contemporary theories of justice emphasize the concept of equality, including Rawls' theory of justice as fairness. For Ronald Dworkin, a complex notion of equality is the sovereign political virtue.<ref>(Ronald Dworkin, Sovereign Virtue (Harvard University Press, 2000)</ref> Dworkin raises the question of whether society is under a duty of justice to help those responsible for the fact that they need help. Complications arise in distinguishing matters of choice and matters of chance, as well as justice for future generations in the redistribution of resources that he advocates.{{sfn|Kim|2015|loc=Chapter 7}}

Law raises important and complex issues about equality, fairness, and justice. There is an old saying that 'All are equal before the law'. The belief in equality before the law is called legal egalitarianism. In criticism of this belief, the author [[Anatole France]] said in 1894, "In its majestic equality, the law forbids [[rich and poor alike]] to sleep under bridges, beg in the streets, and steal loaves of bread."<ref>(France, ''The Red Lily'', [http://www.online-literature.com/anatole-france/red-lily/8/ Chapter VII]).</ref> With this saying, France illustrated the fundamental shortcoming of a theory of legal equality that remains blind to social inequality; the same law applied to all may have disproportionately harmful effects on the least powerful.

===Proportionality===
Proportionality in justice refers to the principle that rewards and punishments should correspond directly and appropriately to the merit or gravity of actions. Rooted in ancient philosophical and legal traditions, proportionality ensures fairness and balance by aligning consequences with responsibility. [[Plato]] articulated an early philosophical basis for proportionality, describing justice as a harmonious state in which each individual fulfills the role best suited to them and receives what corresponds to their actions and nature (''Republic'', Book IV, 433a–b). This principle has significantly influenced modern legal doctrines, particularly in criminal law, ethics, and human rights, emphasizing fairness and avoiding arbitrary or excessive punishment.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Proportional punishment {{!}} criminal law {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/proportional-punishment |access-date=24 March 2025 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=What is proportionality? |url=https://www.bihr.org.uk/get-informed/legislation-explainers/what-is-proportionality#:~:text=Proportionality%20in%20human%20rights%20law,to%20achieve%20the%20legitimate%20aim |access-date=24 March 2025 |website=British Institute of Human Rights |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Social justice===
{{Main|Social justice}}
Social justice encompasses the just relationship between individuals and their society, often considering how privileges, opportunities, and wealth ought to be distributed among individuals.<ref>{{Cite web |title=social justice {{!}} Definition of social justice in English by Oxford Dictionaries |url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/social_justice |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170114180223/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/social_justice |archive-date=14 January 2017 |access-date=13 November 2018 |website=Oxford Dictionaries {{!}} English}}</ref> Social justice is also associated with [[social mobility]], especially the ease with which individuals and families may move between [[Social stratification|social strata]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ornstein |first=Allan C. |date=1 December 2017 |title=Social Justice: History, Purpose and Meaning |journal=Society |language=en |volume=54 |issue=6 |pages=541–548 |doi=10.1007/s12115-017-0188-8 |issn=1936-4725 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Social justice is distinct from [[cosmopolitanism]], which is the idea that all people belong to a single global community with a shared morality.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Kleingeld |first1=Pauline |title=Cosmopolitanism |year=2014 |url=https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2014/entries/cosmopolitanism/ |encyclopedia=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |editor-last=Zalta |editor-first=Edward N. |edition=Fall 2014 |publisher=Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University |access-date=14 December 2018 |last2=Brown |first2=Eric}}</ref> Social justice is also distinct from [[egalitarianism]], which is the idea that all people are equal in terms of status, value, or rights, as social justice theories do not all require equality.<ref>{{Cite web |title=egalitarianism {{!}} Definition of egalitarianism in English by Oxford Dictionaries |url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/egalitarianism |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181113125343/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/egalitarianism |archive-date=13 November 2018 |access-date=13 November 2018 |website=Oxford Dictionaries {{!}} English}}</ref> For example, sociologist [[George C. Homans]] suggested that the root of the concept of justice is that each person should receive rewards that are proportional to their contributions.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rubinstein |first=David |year=1988 |title=The Concept of Justice in Sociology |journal=Theory and Society |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=527–550 |doi=10.1007/BF00158887 |jstor=657654 |s2cid=143622666}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Homans |first=George Caspar |url=https://archive.org/details/socialbehaviorit0000homa_e3x9/page/246 |title=Social behavior; its elementary forms. |publisher=Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich |year=1974 |isbn=978-0-15-581417-2 |edition=Rev. |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/socialbehaviorit0000homa_e3x9/page/246 246–249] |oclc=2668194}}</ref>

Economist [[Friedrich Hayek]] said that the concept of social justice was meaningless, saying that justice is a result of individual behavior and unpredictable market forces.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hayek |first=F.A. |title=Law, legislation and liberty : a new statement of the liberal principles of justice and political economy |date=1976 |publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul |isbn=978-0-7100-8403-3 |pages=78 |oclc=769281087}}</ref> Social justice is closely related to the concept of relational justice, which is about the just relationship with individuals who possess features in common such as nationality, or who are engaged in cooperation or negotiation.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Poblet |first1=Marta |title=Concepts and Fields of Relational Justice |year=2008 |url=http://ddd.uab.cat/record/143902 |work=Computable Models of the Law |pages=323–339 |series=Lecture Notes in Computer Science |publisher=Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-540-85569-9_21 |isbn=978-3-540-85568-2 |last2=Casanovas |first2=Pompeu|volume=4884 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Nagel |first=Thomas |year=2005 |title=The Problem of Global Justice |journal=Philosophy & Public Affairs |language=en |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=113–147 |doi=10.1111/j.1088-4963.2005.00027.x |issn=1088-4963 |s2cid=144307058}}</ref>

===Equity===
{{Main|Social equity}}
In [[legal theory]], equity is seen as the concept connecting law to justice, since law cannot be applied without reference to justice.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Titi |first=Catharine |title=The Function of Equity in International Law |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford university press |isbn=978-0-19-886800-2 |location=Oxford |chapter=4}}</ref> In that context, justice is seen as 'the rationale and the ethical foundation of equity'.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Titi |first=Catharine |date=14 August 2023 |title=International law in quest for justice |url=https://blog.oup.com/2023/08/international-law-in-quest-for-justice/ |access-date=18 February 2024 |website=OUPblog |language=en}}</ref> One approach towards equity in justice is [[community policing]].<ref name="b308">{{cite journal |last=Thacher |first=David |title=Equity and community policing: A new view of community partnerships |journal=[[Criminal Justice Ethics]] |volume=20 |issue=1 |year=2001 |issn=0731-129X |doi=10.1080/0731129X.2001.9992093 |pages=3–16}}</ref> [[Marxism]] is a needs-based theory, expressed succinctly in [[Karl Marx|Marx's]] slogan "[[from each according to his ability, to each according to his need]]".<ref>Karl Marx, 'Critique of the Gotha Program' in ''Karl Marx: Selected writings'' ed. [[David McLellan (political scientist)|David McLellan]] (Oxford: [[Oxford University Press]], 1977): 564–70 [569].</ref>

===Equality of outcome===
{{Excerpt|Equality of outcome|paragraphs=1|only=paragraphs}}

===Relational justice===
Relational justice examines individual connections and societal relationships, focusing on normative and political aspects. Rawls' theory of justice aims to distribute social goods to benefit the poor, but does not consider power relations, political structures, or social meanings. Even Rawls' self-respect is not compatible with distribution.{{sfn|Kim|2015|loc=Chapter 10}} Iris Marion Young charges that distributive accounts of justice fail to provide an adequate way of conceptualizing political justice in that they fail to take into account many of the demands of ordinary life and that a relational view of justice grounded upon understanding the differences among social groups offers a better approach, one which acknowledges unjust power relations among individuals, groups, and institutional structures.<ref>[[Iris Marion Young]], Justice and the Politics of Difference ([[Oxford University Press]], 1990).</ref> Young Kim also takes a relational approach to the question of justice, but departs from Iris Marion Young's political advocacy of group rights and instead, he emphasizes the individual and moral aspects of justice.{{sfn|Kim|2015|p=}}{{pn|date=February 2025}} As to its moral aspects, he said that justice includes responsible actions based on rational and autonomous moral agency, with the individual as the proper bearer of rights and responsibilities. Politically, he maintains that the proper context for justice is a form of liberalism with the traditional elements of liberty and equality, together with the concepts of diversity and tolerance.

===Speed===
{{Main|Speedy trial}}
The phrase "[[Justice delayed is justice denied]]" refers to the problem of slow justice. The right to [[speedy trial]] is in some [[jurisdictions]] enshrined.<ref name="g700">{{cite journal |title=Speedy Trial Swift Justice: Full-Fledged Right or Second-Class Citizen |journal=Southwestern University Law Review |year=1992 |volume=21 |page=31 |url=https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/swulr21&div=9&id=&page= |access-date=21 July 2024 |last1=Garcia |first1=Alfredo}}</ref> Higher quality justice tends to be speedy.<ref name="g896">{{cite journal |last1=Melcarne |first1=Alessandro |last2=Ramello |first2=Giovanni B. |last3=Spruk |first3=Rok |title=Is justice delayed justice denied? An empirical approach |journal=[[International Review of Law and Economics]] |volume=65 |year=2021 |doi=10.1016/j.irle.2020.105953 |page=105953}}</ref>