2025 Judicial Reform Thesis and Dissertation Grant Program

Passed at the Standing Executive Committee Meeting of the Judicial Reform Foundation on December 2, 2024

I. Objective

To promote judicial reform, guide policy research capacity, and cultivate talents, the Judicial Reform Foundation (hereinafter referred to as the Foundation) has formulated the "Regulations on Grants for Judicial Reform Theses and Dissertations," encouraging the academic community to engage in research on judicial reform issues by awarding grants, sponsoring printing and publication, and holding thesis presentations.

II. Target Applicants and Grant Amounts

To encourage research and ensure fairness in the review process, this grant program accepts applications only for unfinished theses and dissertations.

1. Doctoral Dissertations
   Grant amount: NTD 80,000 in total. Upon passing the first-stage research proposal review, a grant of NTD 30,000 will be awarded. Upon passing the second-stage completed thesis review, a grant of NTD 50,000 will be awarded.
2. Master's Theses
   Grant amount: NTD 50,000 in total. Upon passing the first-stage research proposal review, a grant of NTD 20,000 will be awarded. Upon passing the second-stage completed thesis review, a grant of NTD 30,000 will be awarded.
3. Independent Papers
   Grant amount: NTD 30,000 to 80,000 in total. Upon passing the first-stage research proposal review, a grant of NTD 10,000 to 30,000 will be awarded. Upon passing the second-stage completed paper review, a grant of NTD 20,000 to 70,000 will be awarded. Independent papers must be at least 20,000 words, and the grant amount will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the Thesis and Dissertation Review Committee depending on the research proposal and the completed paper.

III. Research Topics

Funded theses and dissertations must focus on judicial reform-related issues, including but not limited to academic fields such as law, political science, sociology, forensic science, legal education, and human rights conventions.

Priority research topics for 2025 are as follows:

1. Research related to criminal law:

   • Research on strengthening factual adjudication within the criminal litigation system
   • Research on public participation in criminal trials
     Including, but not limited to, legal theories, implementation, and empirical research on the "国民法官法" (國民法官法, Referencing the Citizen Judges Act), as well as research in sociology, education, psychology, and other fields related to this system.
   • Research on technological investigation
     Research related to the "Special Compulsory Disposition Chapter" of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
   • Research on wrongful conviction relief systems
     Including, but not limited to, the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), the Conviction Review Committee of the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office, retrial, or Extraordinary Appeal systems.
   • Research on correctional institution reform
     Including, but not limited to, external prison visitation systems, juvenile correctional education, and the voting rights of inmates.
   • Research on criminal disposition for individuals with mental disorders
     Including, but not limited to, provisional placement, custodial disposition, forensic psychiatric hospitals, and related issues.
   • Research on the criminal compensation system
     Including, but not limited to, empirical and legal research utilizing the "Taiwan Criminal Compensation Recipients Database" published by the Foundation.

2. Empirical research on the death penalty system
   Including, but not limited to, research on Judgment No. 8 of the Constitutional Court in 2024 or related legislative amendments.

3. Empirical or comparative legal research on constitutional litigation

4. Research on strengthening factual adjudication in the civil litigation system
   Including, but not limited to, research on the reform of the civil expert testimony system and the review of rules of evidence.

5. Research on the judicial system:

   • Research on alleviating judicial burdens
     Including, but not limited to, revitalizing the allocation and reuse of judicial manpower, adjusting prosecutors' powers and responsibilities, and improving litigation procedures or workflows.
   • Research on judicial accountability
     Including, but not limited to, judge or prosecutor evaluation systems, and research on strengthening the effectiveness of administrative supervision by judicial heads.
   • Research analyzing the legitimacy, establishing supporting mechanisms, and conducting human rights impact assessments regarding the application of artificial intelligence in public authority administration such as litigation procedures, law enforcement processes, and administrative dispositions.

6. Research on the attorney system
   Including, but not limited to, establishing an attorney professional certification system, increasing public accessibility to legal services, and strengthening attorney ethics, discipline, and sanction systems; historical, sociological, political, or other interdisciplinary research on attorneys participating in public policy and rule-of-law collaboration as members of the legal profession.

7. Research on the protection of rights and legal systems for crime victims
   Including, but not limited to, research on compensation systems, protection organizations and services, and litigation participation related to the Crime Victim Rights Protection Act.

8. Research on improving the quality of forensic science and expert testimony
   Including, but not limited to, research on the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science (OSAC) establishing standard operating procedures for forensic science; research on the construction and adjustment of related domestic systems.

9. Research on the protection of rights for persons with psychosocial disabilities
   Including, but not limited to, research on issues following the 2022 amendment to the Mental Health Act, and how related subsidiary legislation should be formulated.

IV. Application Procedure

1. Application Period: June 2, 2025 (Monday) to July 31, 2025 (Thursday).

2. Application documents (please download the application form at the bottom of the page)

   • Application Form

   • Thesis/Dissertation Research Proposal

   • Recommendation letter from an advisor or scholar/expert

3. Please email the electronic files of the application documents to "pbz@jrf.org.tw" with the subject line "Application for 2025 Judicial Reform Thesis and Dissertation Grant Program." Recipient: Pan Pei-chen. Telephone: 02-25231178 ext. 16. After submitting your application documents, please call to confirm receipt.

V. Review Method

(Please refer to Appendix 2, "Regulations on Grants for Judicial Reform Theses and Dissertations")

1. The first-stage review by the Thesis and Dissertation Review Committee is divided into an initial written review and a secondary oral interview. The list of accepted applicants will be announced, and grants will be awarded, before October 1st each year.
2. Applicants accepted in the first-stage review must submit their completed thesis or dissertation within the following deadlines:
   (1) Doctoral dissertations: 3 years.
   (2) Master's theses: 2 years.
   (3) Independent papers: 1 to 3 years, determined on a case-by-case basis by the Review Committee based on the submission schedule in the research proposal.
   The deadline begins on October 1st of the year of acceptance. Failure to submit the thesis or dissertation past the deadline will result in the forfeiture of eligibility for the second-stage review.
   Applicants may apply in writing with stated reasons for an extension of the submission deadline, which shall not exceed one year and may only be granted once.
3. The second-stage review by the Thesis and Dissertation Review Committee is divided into external review and final review. The list of applicants passing the second-stage review will be announced, and grants will be awarded, before January 11th each year.

VI. Rights and Obligations

(Please refer to Appendix 2, "Regulations on Grants for Judicial Reform Theses and Dissertations")

1. Recipients shall not apply for awards, grants, or subsidies from other government agencies or social organizations using the same thesis or dissertation. In the event of a violation of the prohibition against duplicate funding, the recipient's qualification will be revoked, and the full amount of the grant received must be returned.

2. Applicants must ensure that the content of their thesis or dissertation is free from plagiarism, adaptation, infringement, or any other violations of academic ethics or copyright laws. In the event of illegality or infringement, the recipient's qualification will be revoked, and the full amount of the grant received must be returned.

3. Upon formal publication of the thesis or dissertation, the recipient shall state on the first page: "This work was supported by a grant from the Judicial Reform Foundation, to which we express our sincere gratitude."

4. Recipients shall agree to grant the Foundation a royalty-free right to publicly display, exhibit, and transmit the full content of their thesis or dissertation without limitation as to region, time, or method.

VII. Other Awards

The Foundation may reward recipients through other means such as holding public commendations, arranging thesis presentations, or other activities; and may promote funded theses and dissertations by sponsoring printing costs, publishing monographs or special issues, or other methods. Award activities and promotional methods shall be decided by the Thesis and Dissertation Review Committee.

Related Document Downloads

1. Application Form for the 2025 Judicial Reform Thesis and Dissertation Grant Program
2. Regulations on Grants for Judicial Reform Theses and Dissertations