A Study of the Organizational Reform of Prosecutors' Office in Taiwan
Date Issued
2016
Date
2016
Author(s)
Lin, Ta
Abstract
The public prosecutors’ office in Taiwan has been heavily criticized for improper political interference, abuse of prosecutorial discretion, and inefficiency. The above-mentioned negative images come from the deficiency in the prosecutorial system design. This study points out that the public prosecutors’ office shall be reformed on the basis of the laws governing prosecutorial organization, prosecutorial functions and criminal procedure. Also, this study, based on normative and political perspectives, offers three reformative initiatives to reinforce prosecutorial independence, accountability, and efficiency. By introducing Mirjan R. Damaska’s theory of state assignment and judicial function, this study suggests that the public prosecutors’ office in Taiwan is a hierarchical archetype constructed on the basis of the activist state policy-implementing ideology. It differs from the U.S. prosecutorial system, inclining to a reactive state conflict-solving ideology and accordingly reveals a coordinating archetype of organizational design. As a result, the prosecutorial organization reform in Taiwan shall not embrace the U.S. system without due consideration. Moreover, based on Weber’s theory of bureaucratic management and theory of new public management, this study contends that the organizational reform of the public prosecutors’ office in Taiwan shall take a pluralistic public management model as a guideline to reinforce the prosecutorial independence, accountability and efficiency. With respect to prosecutorial independence, this study, after reviewing current prosecutorial system in Taiwan, finds that current prosecutorial promotion system is the primary factor to erode the prosecutorial independence. By weighing and balancing four critical prosecutorial values, prosecutorial independence, accountability, prosecutorial integration, and prosecutorial autonomy, this study presents several proposals of prosecutorial promotion system reform. First, the promotion of lower level prosecutors shall, as that of all district court judges in Taiwan, be based on election by all eligible prosecutors. Second, the Taiwan high prosecutors’ office shall downsize; positions there shall also be set based on the ideology of gaining experience. Third, after considering check-and-balance of two opposing values, prosecutorial independence and democratic accountability, this study contends that appointment of chief prosecutors in all district prosecutors’ office shall still be under the discretion of Minister of Justice. Regarding prosecutorial accountability and supervision, this study suggests that the status quo of prosecutorial supervision system in Taiwan is overall adequate and appropriate; however, the Second-Level Reconsideration system shall be abolished. This study also suggests that Taiwan shall adopt Japanese Committee for the Inquest of Prosecution to replace current Second-Level Reconsideration system, and that may effectively reinforce prosecutorial supervision as well as improve public trust in prosecutors in Taiwan. As to increasing prosecutorial efficiency, the study first indicates that current prosecutorial inefficiency in Taiwan shall be attributed to the overwhelming workload for individual prosecutors. Increasing positions of prosecutors is accordingly of great urgency. This study then suggests the adoption of Japanese Assistant Prosecutor (AP) system as well as increasing positions of Public Prosecuting Affairs Official (PAO), and to have each prosecutor be assisted by one PAO. Besides, all APs and PAOs are entitled to be promoted to prosecutors by way of passing certain examinations, which keep lines of promotion open and transparent as well as facilitate the promotion of outstanding lower level prosecutors and, most important of all, improves prosecutorial efficiency.
Subjects
prosecutor
organization reform
prosecutorial independence
democratic accountability
prosecutorial integration
prosecutorial autonomy
SDGs
Type
thesis
File(s)![Thumbnail Image]()
Loading...
Name
ntu-105-D96322004-1.pdf
Size
23.54 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum
(MD5):3212fd046a8d43229182ea6caea93459