Problem-Solving Courts in Comparative Law: Combination of Therapy and Responsibility
Keywords:
Problem-solving courts – Therapeutic justice - Drug courts - Mental health in law - Offender rehabilitation - Judicial innovation
Abstract
This paper examines the innovative approach of problem-solving courts within the framework of comparative law, emphasizing the integration of therapeutic jurisprudence and individual criminal responsibility. By analyzing various models from different jurisdictions, the study highlights how these courts effectively address underlying issues in criminal behavior, such as substance abuse and mental health problems, through tailored interventions. The research draws on a comparative analysis to explore the effectiveness of these courts in reducing recidivism, enhancing offender rehabilitation, and promoting social reintegration. The paper also discusses the challenges and potential of this approach in balancing the goals of therapy and legal accountability. Through a comprehensive review of judicial, and policy frameworks, this study provides valuable insights into the evolving role of the judiciary in addressing complex social issues and the potential of problem-solving courts as a transformative tool in the criminal justice system.
References
Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration (AIJA) - “Publications portal - Australasian therapeutic jurisprudence clearinghouse” (2023). https://aija.org.au/publications-introduction/australasian-therapeutic-jurisprudence-clearinghouse/problem-solving-courts/mental-health-and-mental-health-courts/
Bajović, V. (2010). Therapeutic jurisprudence and problem – solving courts. Crimen. No. 2, 257–269. http://crimenjournal.ius.bg.ac.rs/toc2010-2s.htm
Berman, G., & Feinblatt, J. (2001). Problem-solving courts: A brief primer. Law & Policy, Vol. 23, 125–140. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9930.00107
Boone, M. & Langbroek, P. (2019). Problem-solving initiatives in administrative and criminal law in the Netherlands. Utrecht Law Review, Vol.14, Issue 3, 64-76. http://doi.org/10.18352/ulr.473
Butler, S. (1999). A Tale of Two Sectors: A Critical Analysis of the Proposal to Establish Drug Courts in the Republic of Ireland. 10th annual ESSD Conference on Drug Use and Drug Policy in Europe, Vienna, Austria. https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/4268/
Casey, T. (2004). When Good Intentions Are Not Enough: Problem-Solving Courts and the Impending Crisis of Legitimacy. SMU Law Review, Vol. 57, 1459 - 1520. https://scholar.smu.edu/smulr/vol57/iss4/4/
Casey, P.M. & Rottman, D.B. (2005). Problem-Solving Courts: Models and Trends. The Justice System Journal, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 35-56.
Cissner, A. B., Labriola M. & Rempel, M. (2015). Domestic Violence Courts: A Multisite Test of Whether and How They Change Offender Outcomes. Violence Against Women, Vol. 21, Issue 9,1102-1122. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801215589231
Collins, E. (2021). The Problem of Problem-Solving Courts. U.C. Davis Law Review, Vol.54, 1573-1629. https://lawreview.law.ucdavis.edu/archives/54/3/problem-problem-solving-courts
Đorđević, Đ., & Bodrožić, I. (2020). A new legal solution on recidivism in Serbian criminal legislation. NBP. Nauka, bezbednost, policija, 25(3), 71‒85. https://doi.org/10.5937/nabepo25-30459
Family Drug and Alcohol Court – FDAC. (2023). https://fdac.org.uk/what-does-research-say-about-fdacs/
Fulkerson, A. (2009). The drug treatment court as a form of restorative justice. Contemporary Justice Review, Vol. 12, No. 3, 253–267. https://doi.org/10.1080/10282580903105772
Fulkerson, A., Keena, L. D., & O'Brien, E. (2013). Understanding Success and Nonsuccess in the Drug Court. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, Vol. 57, Issue 10, 1297–1316.
EMCDDA, "Best practice portal“. (2023). https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/best-practice_en
Koshan, J. (2018). Specialised domestic violence courts in Canada and the United States: Key factors in prioritising safety for women and children.
Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, Vol. 40, Issue 4, 515-532. https://doi.org/10.1080/09649069.2018.1519656
Kruithof, K., Davies, M., Disley, E., Strang L., & Ito K.(2016). Study on alternatives to coercive sanctions as response to drug law offences and drug related crimes -Final Report. European Commission. file:///C:/Users/Windows%20User/Downloads/study-on-alternatives-to-coercive-sanctions-as-response-DR0116352ENN.pdf
Kury, H., Kuhlmann, A. & Quintas, J. (2019). On the preventative effect of sanctions for drug crime. The United States, Germany, and Portugal. Archives of Criminology, XLI, 261–295. https://ak.inp.pan.pl/index.php/ak/article/view/342/kury_kuhlmann_quintas_on_the_p_7420AK2019F.pdf
Labriola, M., Bradley, S., O'Sullivan, C. S., Rempel, M., & Moore, S. (2009). A National Portrait of Domestic Violence Courts, National Center for State Courts.
Lane, E. (2003). Due Process and Problem-Solving Courts. Fordham Urban Law Journal, Vol. 30, No. 3, 955 – 1026. https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj/vol30/iss3/12
McCoy, C., Heydebrand, W., & Mirchandani, R. (2015). The problem with problem-solving justice: Coercion vs. democratic deliberation. Restorative Justice, Vol. 3, 159–187. https://doi.org/10.1080/20504721.2015.1069085
McIvor, G., Eley, S., Malloch M. & Yates, R. (2003). Establishing Drug Courts in Scotland: Early Experiences of the Pilot Drug Courts in Glasgow and Fife - Research Findings, Crime and Criminal Justice Findings No.71, Scottish Executive Social Research. http://hdl.handle.net/1893/15798
Ministry of Justice of New Zealand, “Specialist courts portal - Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment Court” (2023) https://www.justice.govt.nz/courts/criminal/specialist-courts/alcohol-and-other-drug-treatment-court/
Mitchell, O. (2011). Drug and other specialty courts. In: Tonry, M. (ed.), The Oxford handbook of crime and criminal justice, New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 843–871. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/286688221_Drug_and_Other_Specialty_Courts
Mitchell, O., Wilson, D. B., Eggers, A., & MacKenzie, D. L. (2012). Assessing the effectiveness of drug courts on recidivism: A meta-analytic review of traditional and non-traditional drug courts, Journal of Criminal Justice, Vol. 40, 60–71.
National Association of Drug Court Professionals. (1997). Defining drug courts: the key components. Washington, D.C.: Office of Justice Programs, Drug Courts program Office.
National Treatment Court Resource Center (NTCRC) - Treatment Courts Across US States/Territories (2022). https://ntcrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2022_NTCRC_TreatmentCourt_Count_Table.pdf
Nolan, J.L. (2009). Legal Accents, Legal Borrowing: The International Problem-Solving Court Movement. Princeton University Press
Payne, J. (2006). Specialty courts: current issues and future prospects. Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice no. 317. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi317
Peters, R.H., Young, M. S., Rojas, E.C. & Gorey, C. M. (2017). Evidence-based treatment and supervision practices for co-occurring mental and substance use disorders in the criminal justice system. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Vol. 43, Issue 4, 475–488. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00952990.2017.1303838
Schneller, E. (2012). Family Violence Courts. E – brief. NSW Parliamentary Library Research Service. https://apo.org.au/node/29716
Schaefer, L. & Beriman, M. (2019). Problem-Solving Courts in Australia: A Review of Problems and Solutions, Victims & Offenders, Vol. 14, No. 3, 344–359. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2019.1595245
Slinger, E. & Roesch, R. (2010). Problem-solving courts in Canada: A review and a call for empirically-based evaluation methods, International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, Vol. 33, 258-264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2010.06.008
Steadman, H. J., Davidson, S. & Brown, C. (2001). Mental health courts: Their promise and unanswered questions. Psychiatric Services, Vol. 52, Issue 4., 457-458. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.52.4.457
Sykes, G. M. (2009). Torments of prisoners. In: Ignjatović Đ., Theories in Criminology, Belgrade, 520-527.
Tešović, O. (2018). Alternative criminal sanctions in the criminal law of the Republic of Serbia. [PhD thesis, University of Belgrade, Faculty of Law]
Thielo, A. et al. (2019). Prisons or Problem-Solving: Does the Public Support Specialty Courts?, Victims & Offenders, Vol. 14, No. 3, 267–282. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2019.1595243
Walker, L.E.A., Pann, J.M., Shapiro, D.L. & Van Hasselt, V.B. (2016). Best Practices for the Mentally ill in the Criminal Justice System. Springer.
Wexler, D.B. (2005). Therapeutic Jurisprudence and the Rehabilitative Role of the Criminal Defense Lawyer. St. Thomas Law Review, Vol. 17, No. 3, 743-774. https://www.academia.edu/51961352/Therapeutic_Jurisprudence_and_the_Rehabilitative_Role_of_the_Criminal_Defense_Lawyer
Wiener, R. et.al. (2010). A testable theory of problem solving courts: Avoiding past empirical and legal failures, International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, Vol. 33, 417-427. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2010.09.012
Winick, B. J. (2003). Therapeutic Jurisprudence and Problem Solving Courts, Fordham Urban Law Journal, Vol. 30, No. 3., 1055-1103. https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj/vol30/iss3/14
Wiseman, C. M. (2005). Drug Courts: Framing Policy to Ensure Success. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, Vol. 49, Issue 3, 235-238. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X05275932
Wolff, N. (2014). Domestic Violence Courts: The Case of Lady Justice Meets the Serpents of the Caduceus. In: Wiener, L.R. & Brank, E.M. (ed.), Problem Solving Courts, Social Science and Legal Perspectives, 83–112. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281709203_Domestic_Violence_Courts_The_Case_of_Lady_Justice_Meets_the_Serpents_of_the_Caduceus
Harris, D. (ed.). (1997). Drug Courts: Overview of Growth, Characteristics, and Results, Report to the Committee on the Judiciary U.S. Senat and the Committee on the Judiciary House of Representatives, Washington.
Huddleston, W. D. & Marlowe, B. (2011). Painting the current picture: A national report on drug courts and other problem-solving court programs in the United States, Washington, DC, National Drug Court Institute.
Yuan, Y. & Capriotti, M. R. (2019). The Impact of Mental Health Court: A Sacramento Case Study. Behavioral Sciences & The Law. Vol. 37, Issue 4, 452-467. https://doi.org/10.1002/bsl.2421
Bajović, V. (2010). Therapeutic jurisprudence and problem – solving courts. Crimen. No. 2, 257–269. http://crimenjournal.ius.bg.ac.rs/toc2010-2s.htm
Berman, G., & Feinblatt, J. (2001). Problem-solving courts: A brief primer. Law & Policy, Vol. 23, 125–140. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9930.00107
Boone, M. & Langbroek, P. (2019). Problem-solving initiatives in administrative and criminal law in the Netherlands. Utrecht Law Review, Vol.14, Issue 3, 64-76. http://doi.org/10.18352/ulr.473
Butler, S. (1999). A Tale of Two Sectors: A Critical Analysis of the Proposal to Establish Drug Courts in the Republic of Ireland. 10th annual ESSD Conference on Drug Use and Drug Policy in Europe, Vienna, Austria. https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/4268/
Casey, T. (2004). When Good Intentions Are Not Enough: Problem-Solving Courts and the Impending Crisis of Legitimacy. SMU Law Review, Vol. 57, 1459 - 1520. https://scholar.smu.edu/smulr/vol57/iss4/4/
Casey, P.M. & Rottman, D.B. (2005). Problem-Solving Courts: Models and Trends. The Justice System Journal, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 35-56.
Cissner, A. B., Labriola M. & Rempel, M. (2015). Domestic Violence Courts: A Multisite Test of Whether and How They Change Offender Outcomes. Violence Against Women, Vol. 21, Issue 9,1102-1122. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801215589231
Collins, E. (2021). The Problem of Problem-Solving Courts. U.C. Davis Law Review, Vol.54, 1573-1629. https://lawreview.law.ucdavis.edu/archives/54/3/problem-problem-solving-courts
Đorđević, Đ., & Bodrožić, I. (2020). A new legal solution on recidivism in Serbian criminal legislation. NBP. Nauka, bezbednost, policija, 25(3), 71‒85. https://doi.org/10.5937/nabepo25-30459
Family Drug and Alcohol Court – FDAC. (2023). https://fdac.org.uk/what-does-research-say-about-fdacs/
Fulkerson, A. (2009). The drug treatment court as a form of restorative justice. Contemporary Justice Review, Vol. 12, No. 3, 253–267. https://doi.org/10.1080/10282580903105772
Fulkerson, A., Keena, L. D., & O'Brien, E. (2013). Understanding Success and Nonsuccess in the Drug Court. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, Vol. 57, Issue 10, 1297–1316.
EMCDDA, "Best practice portal“. (2023). https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/best-practice_en
Koshan, J. (2018). Specialised domestic violence courts in Canada and the United States: Key factors in prioritising safety for women and children.
Journal of Social Welfare and Family Law, Vol. 40, Issue 4, 515-532. https://doi.org/10.1080/09649069.2018.1519656
Kruithof, K., Davies, M., Disley, E., Strang L., & Ito K.(2016). Study on alternatives to coercive sanctions as response to drug law offences and drug related crimes -Final Report. European Commission. file:///C:/Users/Windows%20User/Downloads/study-on-alternatives-to-coercive-sanctions-as-response-DR0116352ENN.pdf
Kury, H., Kuhlmann, A. & Quintas, J. (2019). On the preventative effect of sanctions for drug crime. The United States, Germany, and Portugal. Archives of Criminology, XLI, 261–295. https://ak.inp.pan.pl/index.php/ak/article/view/342/kury_kuhlmann_quintas_on_the_p_7420AK2019F.pdf
Labriola, M., Bradley, S., O'Sullivan, C. S., Rempel, M., & Moore, S. (2009). A National Portrait of Domestic Violence Courts, National Center for State Courts.
Lane, E. (2003). Due Process and Problem-Solving Courts. Fordham Urban Law Journal, Vol. 30, No. 3, 955 – 1026. https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj/vol30/iss3/12
McCoy, C., Heydebrand, W., & Mirchandani, R. (2015). The problem with problem-solving justice: Coercion vs. democratic deliberation. Restorative Justice, Vol. 3, 159–187. https://doi.org/10.1080/20504721.2015.1069085
McIvor, G., Eley, S., Malloch M. & Yates, R. (2003). Establishing Drug Courts in Scotland: Early Experiences of the Pilot Drug Courts in Glasgow and Fife - Research Findings, Crime and Criminal Justice Findings No.71, Scottish Executive Social Research. http://hdl.handle.net/1893/15798
Ministry of Justice of New Zealand, “Specialist courts portal - Alcohol and Other Drug Treatment Court” (2023) https://www.justice.govt.nz/courts/criminal/specialist-courts/alcohol-and-other-drug-treatment-court/
Mitchell, O. (2011). Drug and other specialty courts. In: Tonry, M. (ed.), The Oxford handbook of crime and criminal justice, New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 843–871. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/286688221_Drug_and_Other_Specialty_Courts
Mitchell, O., Wilson, D. B., Eggers, A., & MacKenzie, D. L. (2012). Assessing the effectiveness of drug courts on recidivism: A meta-analytic review of traditional and non-traditional drug courts, Journal of Criminal Justice, Vol. 40, 60–71.
National Association of Drug Court Professionals. (1997). Defining drug courts: the key components. Washington, D.C.: Office of Justice Programs, Drug Courts program Office.
National Treatment Court Resource Center (NTCRC) - Treatment Courts Across US States/Territories (2022). https://ntcrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2022_NTCRC_TreatmentCourt_Count_Table.pdf
Nolan, J.L. (2009). Legal Accents, Legal Borrowing: The International Problem-Solving Court Movement. Princeton University Press
Payne, J. (2006). Specialty courts: current issues and future prospects. Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice no. 317. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/tandi317
Peters, R.H., Young, M. S., Rojas, E.C. & Gorey, C. M. (2017). Evidence-based treatment and supervision practices for co-occurring mental and substance use disorders in the criminal justice system. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Vol. 43, Issue 4, 475–488. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00952990.2017.1303838
Schneller, E. (2012). Family Violence Courts. E – brief. NSW Parliamentary Library Research Service. https://apo.org.au/node/29716
Schaefer, L. & Beriman, M. (2019). Problem-Solving Courts in Australia: A Review of Problems and Solutions, Victims & Offenders, Vol. 14, No. 3, 344–359. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2019.1595245
Slinger, E. & Roesch, R. (2010). Problem-solving courts in Canada: A review and a call for empirically-based evaluation methods, International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, Vol. 33, 258-264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2010.06.008
Steadman, H. J., Davidson, S. & Brown, C. (2001). Mental health courts: Their promise and unanswered questions. Psychiatric Services, Vol. 52, Issue 4., 457-458. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.52.4.457
Sykes, G. M. (2009). Torments of prisoners. In: Ignjatović Đ., Theories in Criminology, Belgrade, 520-527.
Tešović, O. (2018). Alternative criminal sanctions in the criminal law of the Republic of Serbia. [PhD thesis, University of Belgrade, Faculty of Law]
Thielo, A. et al. (2019). Prisons or Problem-Solving: Does the Public Support Specialty Courts?, Victims & Offenders, Vol. 14, No. 3, 267–282. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2019.1595243
Walker, L.E.A., Pann, J.M., Shapiro, D.L. & Van Hasselt, V.B. (2016). Best Practices for the Mentally ill in the Criminal Justice System. Springer.
Wexler, D.B. (2005). Therapeutic Jurisprudence and the Rehabilitative Role of the Criminal Defense Lawyer. St. Thomas Law Review, Vol. 17, No. 3, 743-774. https://www.academia.edu/51961352/Therapeutic_Jurisprudence_and_the_Rehabilitative_Role_of_the_Criminal_Defense_Lawyer
Wiener, R. et.al. (2010). A testable theory of problem solving courts: Avoiding past empirical and legal failures, International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, Vol. 33, 417-427. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2010.09.012
Winick, B. J. (2003). Therapeutic Jurisprudence and Problem Solving Courts, Fordham Urban Law Journal, Vol. 30, No. 3., 1055-1103. https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ulj/vol30/iss3/14
Wiseman, C. M. (2005). Drug Courts: Framing Policy to Ensure Success. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, Vol. 49, Issue 3, 235-238. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X05275932
Wolff, N. (2014). Domestic Violence Courts: The Case of Lady Justice Meets the Serpents of the Caduceus. In: Wiener, L.R. & Brank, E.M. (ed.), Problem Solving Courts, Social Science and Legal Perspectives, 83–112. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281709203_Domestic_Violence_Courts_The_Case_of_Lady_Justice_Meets_the_Serpents_of_the_Caduceus
Harris, D. (ed.). (1997). Drug Courts: Overview of Growth, Characteristics, and Results, Report to the Committee on the Judiciary U.S. Senat and the Committee on the Judiciary House of Representatives, Washington.
Huddleston, W. D. & Marlowe, B. (2011). Painting the current picture: A national report on drug courts and other problem-solving court programs in the United States, Washington, DC, National Drug Court Institute.
Yuan, Y. & Capriotti, M. R. (2019). The Impact of Mental Health Court: A Sacramento Case Study. Behavioral Sciences & The Law. Vol. 37, Issue 4, 452-467. https://doi.org/10.1002/bsl.2421
