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This report is part of an undertaking funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in support of justice sector reforms in the Philippines. It consolidates information about the country's justice sector and the reform priorities and achievements of justice sector institutions.

While many reports have studied individual justice sector institutions in the Philippines-notably, the judiciary, the National Prosecution Service (NPS), the Philippine corrections system, and the Philippine National Police (PNP)-none has compiled information about the justice sector as a whole. While it is important to view each institution in the context of the sector, the administration of justice is a function shared by all of these institutions, among others. For example, executive agencies that might seem unrelated to the justice sector-such as the Anti-Money Laundering Council, the country's financial intelligence unit chaired by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (the central bank); the Department of Social Welfare and Development; and agencies in the executive branch with quasi-judicial or dispute-resolution functions-play important roles in justice administration in particular contexts. Reforms introduced in one institution tend to have consequences for others. Conversely, the impact of reforms in one institution may be weakened by the lack of reforms in another justice sector agency.