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Throughout the course of history this world has seen the most heinous of crimes committed by individuals against other human beings. However, it was not until recently that countries of the world were able to join together and establish a permanent legal institution capable of trying these individuals at an international level. In 1998, with the creation of the Rome Statute the international community was able to accomplish what it had failed to do over the previous fifty years, create an International Criminal Court. In examining the background behind this event the question that is raised by this study is, what variables allowed for the successful establishment of an international criminal court in the 1990s that had been missing from previous attempts? To attain a complete answer to this question, this study will take two necessary courses of action. First, a comparison will be drawn between the successful creation of the ICC in the Post-Cold War period and the unsuccessful attempt to establish an ICC after World War II. Second, this research project will carry out a comparative analysis considering three different variables and the role they played in each case. The three different variables that will be analyzed are the international power structure, the influence of NGOs, and the spillover effect of international tribunals. By conducting an analysis in this manner, this study will attempt to determine which variables played the crucial roles in the creation of the ICC.

This research is centered on carrying out a comparison between the current court systems (with particular reference to structures) in Nigeria and South Africa. A pertinent question that comes to bear in relation to court systems, is whether the current court structure in South Africa should be adopted by Nigeria? The response to this question is vital for the avoidance of the adoption of a court structure by Nigeria basically for the reason of its seeming successful implementation in South Africa without giving credence to other factors like the salient distinctiveness of their experiences and the legal systems that operate in both countries which I addressed in the dissertation. In this dissertation, I specifically concentrated on the various courts currently adopted by each country. In chapters three and four, I indentified and examined all the courts in the current court structure of each country, their composition, role, jurisdictions, operations, and other related means of adjudication vis a vis tribunals, arbitrations and even the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. I carried out a comparative analysis in chapter five between the Nigerian and South African court systems with particular reference to the structures of the courts to indentify the strengths and weaknesses of each structure and the indirect and direct threatened reorganizations i.e the proposed reforms in the two countries and their likely effects and repercussions in the enhancement of justice delivery. Prior to looking at the structures of the courts, I generally looked at the role of the judiciary in both countries and their application of judicial concepts like independence of the judiciary, doctrine of judicial precedents and principles of natural justice. I briefly looked at the history of both legal systems and the evolution of their court structures, the current make up of each legal system, which includes their form of government, democratic set ups and the interrelatedness of each organ of government with the judiciary. The relevance of looking at these legal conceptions is merely to create a background understanding and the appreciation of the makeup and contents of the courts in both countries on which the research is centered. In carrying out a comparative analysis of the courts of these two countries I identified their similarities and differences and concluded by making findings and proposals towards a more effective court system for Nigeria. In my conclusion in chapter six, I made observations, suggestions and proffered solutions for the way forward towards achieving a more viable court structure for Nigeria by adopting some strong points from South African court structure. / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Public Law / unrestricted

The rise in cases of child abuse and neglect over the past two decades has overwhelmed the nation’s dependency court and child welfare agencies. While multiple factors are associated with child abuse and neglect, it is indisputable that substance abuse plays a significant role. The families that come into the dependency system with substance abuse issues are substantially more difficult and challenging to serve. Consequently, the families experience low levels of reunification and high levels of child welfare recidivism. In response to the increase in dependency cases involving substance abuse and the inability of the traditional dependency courts (TDC) to handle these cases, Family Dependency Drug Courts (FDDC) were created. The study utilized Therapeutic Jurisprudence Theory to examine differences in child welfare outcomes between substance abusing individuals served in a traditional dependency court system versus the therapeutic jurisprudence driven Family Dependency Drug Court system. Logistic regression, ANOVA and Chi-square were performed on a non-random sample derived from court systems in two Central Florida counties to examine two child welfare outcomes, specifically reunification rates and child welfare recidivism. The findings indicate that substance using participants in the FDDC have much higher rates of reunification than comparable substance using participants processed through the traditional dependency court. Also, of the individuals who attended FDDC, iv those who graduated were reunified at a significantly higher rate than those that didn’t graduate. In regards to child welfare recidivism within a one year time period, there was not a statistically significant difference when comparing the FDDC participants and the TDC participants. When comparing the FDDC participants who completed the program versus those that failed to complete the program, while the child welfare recidivism rates were not significantly different, there is some evidence that the participants that completed the FDDC program experience less child welfare recidivism than those that don’t have the full experience of therapeutic jurisprudence. This research lends some support for both the FDDC program and the explanatory power of Therapeutic Jurisprudence Theory. Theoretical and policy implications, as well as further research, are proposed and discussed

Thesis (M.Court.Mgmt.)--University of Wollongong, 2004. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references: leaf 272-287.

This study isolates the impact of certain factors upon the decision making of the United States Supreme Court. Selected group theory methodology is applied to the Court's decisions from 1969 through 1973. The group structure of the Court, the impact of personnel change, and the effect of judicial attitudes on public policy are explored and statistically measured with a chisquare. Schubert's bloc analysis and a Guttman scale are used to order the data. Conclusions include that two stable blocs existed on the Court during these years. Personnel change is demonstrated as causative of alterations in judicial behavior. Seven of eight groups of cases are shown to stimulate values of the Justices. Suggestions are made for further research.

Presently in South Africa there are no home-grown models of interpreting developed for court interpreters to serve as a guide in the performance of their duty. As such, it was assumed that court interpreters depended on international models to guide them in their work. International models, though they speak to the profession of interpreting in general, lack the specificity that is required to speak to the South African context, leading to problems during the process of interpreting. In the light of this background, this study aimed to: investigate how international models were formulated, by whom and why; establish how South African court interpreters perceive the phenomenon of interpreting and the challenges they encounter in the field; examine how the international models of interpreting function in the South African context and their impact in the courts of law; and formulate an interpreting model that is informed by South African languages, cultures and court experiences. Two theoretical frameworks guided this study: Descriptive Translation Studies (DTS) and Cultural Studies. The former was used to describe what transpires in the South African court system with regard to interpreting, while cultural studies theory was used to explore cultural issues in this field. In order to fulfil the aims of the study, the qualitative research method was adopted to collect and analyse data. Data was collected from practising court interpreters using four methods: focus groups, questionnaires, courtroom observations and interviews. The selected methods were used to collect data so that a balanced and integrated view of interpreting could be sought for the purposes of developing a representative model. The findings of the study showed that there is a fairly balanced representation of men and women working as court interpreters, yet more than three quarters of these are not trained in languages and in court interpreting. This points to an urgent need to train court interpreters so that they may carry out their duties effectively. In defining a court interpreter, diverse definitions were provided; these included facilitator of communication, language facilitator, conveyor of messages, helper in the courts, and mediator among others. Most of these definitions were in line with international models but the definitions were born out of experience and not training because, when asked directly what interpreting models are, almost none of the participants could define a model and gave examples of modes of interpreting in place of models per se. Because models of interpreting serve as a guide for the court interpreters, a lack of knowledge thereof shows that South African court interpreters work without guidance, emphasising the need to develop a local model that addresses the needs of the country. In defining court interpreting, diverse definitions were also provided; the most interesting was the perception of court interpreting as a communication process that involves listening, analysing, taking down notes, remembering, and presenting the message to the target listener. Although not many held this view, this definition showed that through experience and practice, court interpreters gain useful knowledge about their trade; thus, experience cannot be downplayed in the field. With regard to the roles and duties of court interpreters, it was noted that they perform different duties which are in conflict with their job title. Beyond the fact that this proves that there is controversy over the duties of court interpreters, the findings show that court interpreters are not treated as the professionals that they are. In line with the findings, the researcher developed a socio-linguistic-cultural model that put emphasis on training of court interpreters, language, culture and subject knowledge. The method of trial and error that is currently prevailing in South Africa was strongly condemned in the study. The study recommended that court interpreters be trained, the DoJCD should recruit qualified interpreters, legislation on court interpreting should be developed as well as setting up a court interpreting professional body to which all court interpreters must subscribe and be members, among others. / Linguistics and Modern Languages / D. Litt. et Phil.(Languages, Linguistics and Literature)