(יח) שֹׁפְטִ֣ים וְשֹֽׁטְרִ֗ים תִּֽתֶּן־לְךָ֙ בְּכָל־שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֨ר ה' אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לְךָ֖ לִשְׁבָטֶ֑יךָ וְשָׁפְט֥וּ אֶת־הָעָ֖ם מִשְׁפַּט־צֶֽדֶק׃ (יט) לֹא־תַטֶּ֣ה מִשְׁפָּ֔ט לֹ֥א תַכִּ֖יר פָּנִ֑ים וְלֹא־תִקַּ֣ח שֹׁ֔חַד כִּ֣י הַשֹּׁ֗חַד יְעַוֵּר֙ עֵינֵ֣י חֲכָמִ֔ים וִֽיסַלֵּ֖ף דִּבְרֵ֥י צַדִּיקִֽם׃ (כ) צֶ֥דֶק צֶ֖דֶק תִּרְדֹּ֑ף לְמַ֤עַן תִּֽחְיֶה֙ וְיָרַשְׁתָּ֣ אֶת־הָאָ֔רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־ה' אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לָֽךְ׃ (ס)
18 You shall appoint magistrates and officials for your tribes, in all the settlements that the Lord your God is giving you, and they shall govern the people with due justice. 19 You shall not judge unfairly: you shall show no partiality; you shall not take bribes, for bribes blind the eyes of the discerning and upset the plea of the just. 20 Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
Justice, justice shall you pursue — search out a reliable court.
(1) Justice, justice - Scripture addresses the litigants. The word appears twice: because one must pursue justice, whether it be to one’s gain, or to one’s loss; or the repetition denotes “time after time” — all the days of your life; or for emphasis.
when these honorable, pious and magnanimous men, who were outstanding in their wisdom, saw that the words of the one who is in disagreement with them were better than their words and [that] their investigation is correct, they conceded to him and recanted to his opinion. All the more so, when other people see that the truth is leaning towards the one with which they have a conflict, should [such a one] lean towards the truth and not stiffen his neck. And this is the [meaning of the] verse (Deuteronomy 16:20), "Justice, justice shall you pursue."
(א) צדק צדק תרדף טעם הכפל לומר הדיינין צריכין שישפטו את העם משפט צדק וגם אתה צריך לרדוף הצדק תמיד
The reason for the doubling is to teach not only judges must pursue pursue righteousness for the people but You too must constantly seek justice.
ויהיה זריז לבקש צדקה, דכתיב (דברים טז כ): "צדק צדק תרדוף"; וכתיב (ישעיהו נא א): "שמעו אלי רודפי צדק מבקשי יי".
A person should have be alert to seek justice, as it is written : "Justice, justice shall you pursue" (Deut. 16:20). And it is written, "Hearken to Me, ye that follow after righteousness, Ye that seek the Lord" (Is. 51:1).
Shnay Luchot HaBrit, Shoftim 101a
Justice, justice shall you pursue. It says "Justice" twice. The first is directed to the judges who judge in accordance with Torah law. There is a second "justice" for compromise or emergency decrees, which are done occasionally by a prophet or king, in order for the world to exist. Therefore, the verse concludes that you may live, and inherit the land which the Lord your God gives you. As the Sages said "Jerusalem was destroyed only because they gave judgments therein in accordance with Biblical law." (Shnay Luchot HaBrit, Shoftim 101a)
צדק צדק תרדוף. שאין חקר וסוף לבחי' צדק ואמת. כי ה' אלקים אמת. ולכך לעולם יש להוסיף ולהעמיק שיהי' אמת לאמיתו. כי אינו אמת עד שנעשה כל האדם אחד מיוחד לעבודתו ית' ואמת מראש עד סוף אותיות התורה. בשם הרב הק' מפרשיסחא היהודי ז"ל להיות רדיפת הצדק. בצדק לא בשקר. ודפח"ח:
Justice Justice - There is no end to seeking Truth and Justice because G!d is Truth. Thus there is always a need for everyone to reach deeper towards their Truth. Because it is not Truth until all uniquely perform their divine service. This is what the Yehudi Hakadosh says it means to run after Justice. Justice and not Lies.