The Permanent Observatory for Justice (OPJ) of the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra was established in 1996. Its main objectives are to promote interdisciplinary research on the justice system through socio-legal studies, particularly in the areas of fundamental rights, access to law and justice, the administration and management of justice, digitalisation of justice, legal professions, the recruitment and training of justice professionals, alternative dispute resolution, and judicial cooperation; to monitor, analyse and disseminate information on the performance of courts and other institutions and support services within the justice system, such as the police, prison services, and social reintegration services; and to foster informed public debate on issues relating to law and justice.
Contributing to justice policy is one of the core dimensions of the work carried out by the OPJ, both through comparative and socio-legal studies supporting the preparation of reforms, the development of reform proposals and draft legislation in various areas of justice, and through studies aimed at evaluating and monitoring reforms.
The knowledge produced by the OPJ is disseminated in order to inform public debate on the issues under study through a range of strategies, including participation in international research networks; the organisation of, and participation in, scientific meetings and events involving justice professionals and civil society; a regular presence in the media; and the publication and wide dissemination of newsletters as part of ongoing projects.
Given its various objectives, the work of the OPJ has focused not only on Portugal, but also on the European Union, the Portuguese-speaking African countries (PALOP), particularly Angola and Mozambique, and Timor-Leste.
The main results of the research carried out by the OPJ are published in books, national and international journals specialising in the field of sociology and law, reports, proposals for reforms and preliminary draft laws.
In 2012, the creation of the Legal and Judicial Training Unit (UNIFOJ) made it possible to offer advanced training courses, delivered both in person and at a distance, on a range of topics in the fields of law and justice.
