Socio-legal studies and criminal justice: Reflections on ‘participation’

The Journal of Law and Society (JLS) is nationally and internationally recognised for its ground-breaking contribution to shaping understandings of the relationship between law and society. We relished the opportunity to come together to reflect upon ‘participation’ and its relationship to criminal justice as part of the JLS 50th anniversary celebrations. In this paper, we examine the concept of participation from both a ‘socio’ and ‘legal’ standpoint, highlighting the intersection between the two, and explore the ways in which the theme of participation has been approached by existing JLS contributors. We do this by discussing the themes of doctrinal approaches to effective participation, access to justice, legitimacy, and procedural justice; and conclude by considering avenues for future research.