Who administers the punishment

"You may deserve some good more than I do even though I would benefit more from getting it, I need it more, and my getting it would result in more equality between us."  Brad Hooker, Just Deserts?, www.philosophypress.co.UK/?p=502. 

Deservedness defines: 

• the recipient of the credit or blame, 
• the reason for the credit or blame, 
• the amount of credit or blame, 
• the provider of credit or blame. 

Deservedness thus defines a relationship between recipient and provider of what is deserved in a way that differs from fairness, which is indifferent to the provider of what is being allocated. 

For that reason fairness can be defined entirely in terms of the allocation where deservedness must include a description of the parties to the apportioning of credit or blame. For example, a criminal deserves punishment but that punishment must come from the proper source. Who administers the punishment is a crucial element in the apportionment of deservedness.