Confidence in Courts of Justice: District Court Survey 1999

In the survey, customers of the Turku District Court were interviewed in order to study their image of the courts of justice in Finland. The respondents were asked the reason for their visit, and whether they had visited a court before. The number of visits, and the reasons for them were recorded. The respondents then evaluated their experiences, and commented on various statements regarding judges and courts in general. Impartiality of the courts was evaluated. If a respondent considered them to be biased, (s)he was asked to state the reasons for this kind of view. All respondents commented on trial costs, and whether it should be easier to operate with the judicial system. They also estimated to what extent the goals set to the judiciary had been realised in the Finnish courts of justice, and whether courts' operations as a whole were satisfactory. Opinions on the lay member procedure and its appropriateness were also surveyed. The respondents were asked where they could turn to for legal advice or counselling, and if they had ever felt they needed these types of services. Those who had needed legal services were asked whether they had used legal aid services, lawyers, law firms, or voluntary legal advice centres. If these types of services had been used, the respondents were asked to describe their personal experiences. Those who had declined such help despite the need were asked to give reasons for this decision. Background variables included the respondent's gender, place of residence, year of birth, and monthly income.