Criminal justice client rehabs can be considered being a significantly better option than time in jail or significant fines for many who have already been convicted of any sort of drug or alcohol related crime. For instance, anyone who has been in prison for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs may qualify to obtain rehab services because of their problem as an alternative to serving time in prison. The judge may even order the individual receive treatment, either alone or in addition to other consequences. First-time offenders in particular will often be given the opportunity to go with a criminal justice client rehab as an alternative to other sentencing, and it is well-advised that they make the most of it when it is an alternative. The concept behind criminal justice client rehabs is it is far more effective and efficient to invest time and effort into treatment than punishment. Much research has been carried out to observe how effective this strategy is on recidivism rates, i.e. if the individual returns or not to criminal justice system following rehab. All indicators seem quite positive, and criminal justice clients that do take part in treatment have a much better chance of remaining out of the judicial system after treatment.