Book excerpt: World Bank Technical Paper No. 280. Addresses the need to improve the administration of justice in Latin America and the Caribbean and provides effective strategies for reform. Judicial reform is a new area of interest for the World Bank. This book addresses the need to improve the administration of justice in Latin America and the Caribbean and provides effective strategies for reform. The report combines the experiences of more than 20 countries in their effort to enhance the quality and efficiency of their judicial systems. The authors highlight the importance of the judiciary in economic development, with a particular focus on court administration, the judicial institutional framework, alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, procedural reforms, access to justice, and the role of the legal profession.