Youth Courts to Take New Approach to Cases, With Focus on Underlying Issues

Aim Is for One-Time Intervention That Sets Young People on New and Better Path

- Theresa Tan

A new approach, which focuses on addressing the issues that underlie why a person ends up in court, will be used to manage young offenders and other cases in the Youth Courts.

The Family Justice Courts (FJC) will assign a dedicated multidisciplinary team—such as the same judge and the same counselor or psychologist—to manage selected cases from start to end, under the therapeutic justice approach.

This would give the team a deeper understanding of each case and the issues involved, build trust and provide more holistic support to the individuals or families involved.

Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon announced this on July 23 at the official opening of the FJC building, which was officiated by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam.

The FJC—which comprise the Family Division of the High Court, the Family Courts and the Youth Courts—have moved into the iconic octagonal building in Havelock Square that once housed the State Courts.

The therapeutic justice approach is already used for divorce cases, where the focus is on problem-solving and helping parents manage conflict and co-parent, instead of the prior adversarial approach.

Chief Justice Menon said the same principles will guide Youth Courts cases: "In this paradigm, underlying issues that shape a young person's behaviour and circumstances should be identified and addressed together with the legal issues before the court whenever possible."