Towards a new “quality” of justice? The experience of the Next Generation UPP project in some Lombard judicial offices

Anyone attending the Italian courtrooms can clearly perceive the numerous differences that can be observed in the way "justice is delivered" in different territorial areas, as well as in different historical moments in the life of a judicial office. This paper aims to argue that, if not adequately governed, never ending innovation policies risk widening or otherwise solidifying such differences, which have a direct and significant impact on the lives and well-being of citizens. The article focuses on the Unified Project for the Dissemination of the Office for the Process and the Implementation of Innovative Operational Models in Judicial Offices for the Clearance of Backlog (UPPTF), funded under the PON Governance and Institutional Capacity 2014-2020. The text intends to present and discuss three initiatives conceived and developed by the research team of the University of Milano-Bicocca, in collaboration with the Tribunals of Busto Arsizio and Monza, and with the Court of Appeal of Milan: the drafting of two guidelines on the activities of collection and analysis of statistical data in civil matters; the definition of a "supply chain" analysis on civil procedural flows between the first and second instances; the design of an executive course on the organization and digital transformation of justice. These experiences will provide an opportunity to develop some reflections on the governance of the Italian justice system, understood as a complex organizational system.