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Commercial Court and Enforcement Assessment ToolAn effective and efficient justice
 system is essential for sustained economic growth. In a
 well-functioning, independent, and efficient justice system,
 decisions are taken within a reasonable time and are
 predictably and effectively enforced, and individual rights,
 including property rights, are adequately protected. Among
 other objectives, the efficiency of the judicial system is
 important for creating a good business climate, attracting
 foreign direct investment, securing tax revenues, and
 supporting economic growth. Research has shown that weak
 contract enforcement, for example, raises the cost of
 borrowing and shortens loan maturities, with a resulting
 negative effect on investment and GDP. Weak court
 enforcement systems have also been linked to late payments,
 which can lead to liquidity issues for companies and
 increase insolvency. Since the publication of the World
 Bank’s World Development Report 2005, the importance of
 well-functioning courts to strengthening the investment
 climate and ultimately to reducing poverty and boosting
 shared prosperity has been brought to the forefront and
 become internationally recognized. Indicators of commercial
 court performance, and business community perceptions of and
 trust in the courts, are a part of the World Bank Group’s
 (WBG) country-level investment climate assessments and its
 influential Investment Climate Surveys and Doing Business
 reports. Court performance has also become an element of
 European Union (EU) and Organization for Economic
 Co-operation and Development (OECD) accession. Helping
 countries to improve commercial court operations and ensure
 improved accessibility and effective delivery of services
 are important components of the development assistance
 provided by the WBG. The Commercial Court and Enforcement
 Assessment Tool has been designed to assist assessment teams
 and client agencies in this effort.
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In Search of Success : Case Studies in Justice Sector Development in Sub-Saharan AfricaThe World Bank, Department for International Development (DFID) and other donors have long been engaged in legal and judicial reform in sub-Saharan Africa in such areas as legal drafting, strengthening court administration, judicial training, and the empowerment of citizens through a better understanding of the legal system. This has often been done on an ad hoc basis with only limited review of other reform efforts in the region. In order to foster a more responsive approach to justice sector development programs, a collection of case studies was commissioned. One of the more daunting tasks was identifying notable justice sector developments or reforms, which offered specific impacts and which could be examined through both a desk review and field research. Independent of the funding source, the evidence base was not only limited but revealed a need for donors themselves to invest in better data collection, which could then be analyzed and measured against benchmarks or objectives such as improved access to justice. There is a significant need to review and learn from experiences, including controversial ones, in Africa's justice sectors. These case studies are not homogenous largely because their subjects vary and span a wide array of developments that reflect the realities of the region. Each story stands alone and is in no particular order. In the final chapter, the conclusions offered in each story are digested into ideas for future actions. The collection also represents a modest range of stories and it is to be hoped that other cases will be identified and shared. A comparison of experiences of sector-wide programs (SWAPs), for example, could help both donors and governments enhance socio-economic impact. It should be noted that the emphasis in this report is on providing information about positive directions in justice sector development and the ways in which lessons learned might be applied to achieve greater impact in the future. The anticipated value of this collection is that some of the conclusions or actions may be taken up and used to contribute to improvements by those committed to improving the rule of law in sub-Saharan Africa and is in search of 'success'.
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Uses and Users of Justice in Africa : The Case of Ghana's Specialised CourtsThis research project involves the tracking of the progress of cases in Ghana's specialized courts. It seeks to provide data that are not usually available for a scientific assessment of the performance of the courts in Ghana. The project, therefore, captures information on the persons and institutions who use the courts in Ghana; what these claimants come to court for; the difficulties they encounter in the process; and the value added by recent court reforms in resolving these problems. Further analysis of this information is then used to make specific and targeted recommendations for improving overall adjudicatory effectiveness. The project is similar to other World Bank studies in many respects. It is premised on a general belief that, almost everywhere, courts struggle to deliver quick, effective, accessible, and efficient justice. The huge disconnect between intention and reality is due to a number of factors, namely, the cost of litigation-an issue which bears directly on access to justice; unprecedented delays in case processing; real and perceived corruption within the courts and increasing uncertainty associated with judges' rulings. Delays, generally defined as unreasonable time spent from case filing and processing to case disposition, stand out amongst the list of problems. There is, therefore, a recognized challenge that the judicial sector in Ghana is currently incapable of providing speedy justice, a critical ingredient for public and investor confidence in the justice system.