Exit, Voice and Loyalty within the Judiciary: Judges’ Responses to New Managerialism in the Netherlands

Judges in the Netherlands recently expressed their concerns over the organisation of the judiciary and the pressure to deliver output in a manifesto, which was signed by approximately 700 out of a total of 2,500 judges. At the same time, the judges proclaimed to be highly committed to their work. In this article, we explore this apparent contradiction by studying recent developments in the organisation of the judiciary and in the selection and training of judges. We specifically focus on the consequences that these developments could have on the loyalty of judges. Thereby, we distinguish between loyalty towards the judicial organisation, towards the profession, and towards colleagues. In studying the organisational changes, we notice that it is the focus on the new public management principles that is of particular concern to the judges, as many of these principles may conflict with their professional values. We reason that their loyalty towards the organisation seems to have diminished and that the expressed commitment of judges is more a display of loyalty towards the profession and towards colleagues than towards the organisation.