Day 17 · Fairness
A fair process must survive an inconvenient person.
Fairness is easy when the outcome is already comfortable. Its real test arrives when evidence complicates the schedule, the unpopular person has a valid claim, or correction costs the institution something.
Have a think
A fair process must survive an inconvenient person.
The thought
Justice is not the mood of the decision-maker. It is a process strong enough to protect the person we would rather dismiss. Good systems preserve a path for evidence, appeal, explanation, and repair precisely when power is impatient.
A task for today
Before one consequential decision, name the evidence, the decision owner, and the path for correction. If there is no path, build one.
Sources
Exodus 23:6 · Marcus Aurelius · Due process and equal protection · Magna Carta