Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions – Wayfinding for Civil Justice

Why is Wayfinding for Civil Justice needed?

Many dedicated people are motivated by a desire to see greater access to justice in New Zealand. However, a lack of communication and coordination often leads to duplication of efforts and missed opportunities for collaboration.

Stakeholders at a March 2020 workshop hosted by the Chief Justice and Secretary for Justice agreed that if everyone works together in a coordinated way, New Zealand’s approach to improving people’s access to justice will be stronger. As a result, an independent working group was established to develop a national strategic framework to increase coordination. The work is a project of the Advisory Group on Access to Justice.

Who did the working group engage with?

The working group undertook two rounds of engagement in developing Wayfinding for Civil Justice. They sought the opinions of people who work in organisations and in roles where they see the need to improve access to justice. They were asked: What goals they thought Aotearoa New Zealand needed to focus on? What principles should guide reaching those goals? And how can we better work together to achieve common aims?

For detail on the responses by stakeholders to the first round of submissions, please see our
Summary of Submissions document [PDF, 421 KB].

How will Wayfinding for Civil Justice be used?

The working group’s intention was to develop a framework to use as a planning tool and guide for everyone working to improve access to civil justice. Through setting a shared direction, the framework minimises effort that might otherwise go into identifying problems and researching where effort needs to be expended. Work to improve access to civil justice can instead be more of a coordinated response, directed at the goals and targets that the sector as a whole has set for themselves.

Wayfinding seeks to provide a framework for this coordinated response, while maintaining the space for all stakeholders to pursue their mahi and initiatives in the way they believe best meets the needs of their communities. Each organisation, group, or individual can use Wayfinding to select goals that are most relevant to them and work towards them in the way they consider most effective; with the knowledge that others in the sector are doing the same.

Wayfinding is open to all stakeholders working in the civil justice system to use. The working group anticipate that organisations and people who might be most interested in using Wayfinding include:

  • institutions and organisations that work in the area of civil justice including the judiciary, legal professional organisations, government departments, and academics
  • community groups and people supporting those who see or experience barriers to accessing justice including NGOs, Māori communities, Pacific communities, Asian communities, rural communities, disability communities
  • providers of advice, information, and advocacy, including lawyers and non-lawyer service providers such as advocates and McKenzie friends
  • individuals and organisations who are trying to innovate civil justice
  • funders of work to improve access to justice

What are the next steps for this work?

The working group recommended establishing a National Civil Justice Observatory (the Observatory) to coordinate reporting of initiatives, share information between stakeholders, and maintain momentum for Wayfinding.

The Ministry of Justice is planning to engage a tertiary institution to host the Observatory in 2024.

Once opened, an event to formally launch the Observatory and Wayfinding is expected to be held in mid-2024.

Wayfinding for Civil Justice is intended to have a five-year life span.

This page was last updated: