Civility: The Preservation of Access to Justice
/Excerpts from the Article
By Ronald R. Ward
...There are myriad reasons that may spawn a barrier to access to justice: lack of education, unawareness of rights, inadequate economic means, inequality of economic resources, and, yes, the incivility at times found within the justice system itself...
...Public trust and confidence in our courts is critical to our nation’s civic health. Our courts must be fair, open, and protective of the rights of every individual, and they must be perceived by the public to be so. Sadly, this is increasingly not the case. Ongoing surveys indicate it is not just specific groups of people who see inequality. It is the public at large...
About the Author
Ronald L. (Ron) Ward is the president of the Washington State Bar Foundation, former president of the Washington State Bar Association, a member of the Advisory Council of the Washington Equal Justice Coalition for the provision and support of legal services to deprived citizens, and the founder of the nationally honored WSBA Leadership Institute.