The Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 (2002 c. 26 (N.I.)) is an act devolving certain responsibilities for justice to the Northern Ireland Assembly, establishing certain institutions and establishing certain youth justice measures to implement restorative justice.
Background.
In order to implement the Good Friday Agreement, responsibilities for justice were devolved
The Act is the final product of the Criminal Justice Review.
Full implementation of the Act was delayed due to the period of Direct Rule during 2002-2007.
Provisions.
The Act also transfers the power to remove or suspend a person holding a listed judicial office, so that it is now exercisable by the Lord Chief Justice. At the time, there was some discomfort with the concept of "lay magistrate" among justices of the peace.
The youth justice measures have two types of disposal:
Reception.
The use of community sentences and youth conferences reduced the rate of reoffending.
The use of youth conferencing has been described as restorative justice.