This is the famous saying of US Justice Hunett.
The original sentence of this sentence is "Justice is never absent, only late." Its meaning is a criticism of "delayed justice" and dissatisfaction with inefficient court trials, expressing belatedness. justice is not true justice for everyone.
In William Penn's "Some Fruits of Solitude in Reflections and Maxims" this sentence is considered to delay Justice is Injustice.
We can clearly understand the meaning of this sentence from Martin Luther King's "Letter from Birmingham Jail" in 1963, justice too long delayed is justice denied.
Appreciation
(1) On the one hand, if justice loses its timeliness, it will be worthless. This is why the law mandates the time limit for litigation or arbitration.
(2) On the other hand, if justice loses its timeliness, it will be attributed to irregular procedures. Often, deficiencies and defects in procedural links will lead to delayed justice.
(3) Considering this situation, "justice may be late, but it will never be absent" is undoubtedly just a simple utopian legal concept, just like the folk belief that "good deeds will be rewarded, There is no logical support in it. If you reason carefully, you will find this sentence a bit inexplicable. It is really unbelievable.
(4) In terms of meaning, this sentence is more like talking about justice in the usual sense, rather than legal justice.