|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Publications: Judiciary
|
By Waleed H. Malik
Annex: ICT Experiences: The application of information technology in the judiciary began in 1981, with the installation of a system to distribute cases among judges in the civil appeals court. The current case-distribution software has a sophisticated, computerized method for balancing caseloads. The computer program equalizes the distribution of cases among the judges. The program also ensures that the computer assigns related cases to the same judge or court by searching for related information in the data bank. The Supreme Court and all national and federal courts are connected to an internal and external on-line network that has 500 terminals connected to a central server, in addition to provincial outlets. The system provides information on the cover page of the file, the names of the parties, the court it was assigned to and its connection with prior cases by the same parties. It operates in the courts of appeal where lawyers initially file their cases. It also provides for an on-line follow-up of cases with information on the status of the file. The Supreme Court also has a data processing service with a thesaurus in Spanish and abstracts of the most relevant Supreme Court decisions, which are available on-line for all members of the network. The Judicial Directory is an electronic database kept by the Judicial Management Office, recording all offices and the names of judges and their staff. In general, the administrative management of the Supreme Court is now automated. Electronic mail is also available for members of this network. Similar technological improvements have been implemented in provincial courts, together with the Argentine System of Juridical Information (SAIJ) which includes both national and provincial legislation, court decisions, scholarly opinions, and regulations and decisions issued by administrative entities. The SAIJ is connected throughout the country and is accessible via the internet. Pilot programs for electronic and automated filing and follow-up of cases have been implemented in different jurisdictions. New information systems have been installed in the commercial courts to provide access to judicial decisions and, a case tracking system has been implemented in the civil courts. Many administrative activities now being performed in the court, may be replaced by an automated system which will most likely necessitate a reduction in many administrative positions. If these changes take effect, service should improve and become less costly. At present, two programs are being implemented. One deals with the automation of the civil courts, and the other with the replacement of existing equipment of the Supreme Court and some jurisdictions around the country. For the civil courts, the Supreme Court contracted out provision of computer servers, including hardware and software especially designed for the courts. Presently, also efforts are in hand to review past experiences and develop model courts so as to create and test monitoring systems and statistics. The purpose is to serve as the basis for enhanced technical standards and capabilities and help better plan investments.
Federal and state court systems have used technology in the last years but the experience and coverage is mixed. In early 1990s one of the major initiatives of the federal judiciary has been the computerization of electoral courts. This experience and other reforms have motivated some states judiciaries to advance court automation in different jurisdictions, in aspects such as public information, case management, and document archiving. Studies indicate that the needs for ICT use are rising as many state court systems lag behind in investments. The modernization of the documentary archives of the federal judiciary is a fairly recent initiative that has been motivated by a growing concern for the preservation of the country’s historical archive, and by the need to manage the exponential growth of current archives. Paper archives constitute an enormous investment in terms of time and space, documents deteriorate or are lost, and information retrieval can be laborious. The modernization of archives involves not only the rationalization of existing resources and collections, but also the introduction of new technologies for the electronic storage and retrieval of current documents. In May 1998, the Supreme Federal Tribunal initiated a project of reform, and in early 2000 carried out a survey to identify the problem areas relating to infrastructure, access, archiving policy, training and management strategies. The survey results constitute an important first step in the development of a long-term technical and administrative policy for the management of judicial archives. Follow on work has so far collected information from all the archive-holding judicial institutions in the area of the capital, Brasilia. It has been established that within those institutions there are currently 351,610 linear meters of documents (of which 3,000,404 are judicial and 51,206 are administrative documents); with the oldest document on record dating from January 1st, 1655. Over 99% of existing documents are stored in paper archives; the other 1% is stored in a variety of formats, including microfiche, microfilm, audio and video cassettes, and in a few cases diskette and CD-ROM. There are on average 4 archivists per institution, which means one archivist for every 751 meters of documents. The technical equipment is for the most part antiquated, with only 37% of archives equipped with computer terminals. Most of the judicial archives do not, therefore, have either the technical or personnel resources necessary for the efficient management, storage and retrieval of documents. Moreover, the policies that govern the selection of documents to be stored or eliminated tend to be ad hoc or inconsistent: The most energetic elimination of documents, for example, tends to take place in the institutions where space is at a particularly high premium. Based on the survey results, it has been determined that the modernization of the historical archives will need to include the rationalization and renovation of storage spaces (with the introduction of sliding shelves for example,) electronic indexing, and coherent policies for document preservation or elimination. With regard to the processing and warehousing of current documents, the potential for IT applications is far greater. Many areas of operation in the Judiciary are already computerized; for example: access to justice via the Internet, jurisprudence databases, computerized procedures and—increasingly—the computerization of records have all enhanced the performance of judicial functions. The Supreme Court, for example, now uses bar codes in the records of its procedures, thus facilitating the warehousing and recuperation of archive documents, and optimizing the use of time and space. However, only 19% of the institutions surveyed have established policy guidelines that regulate the reproduction and computerization of documentary records. There is therefore an urgent need for consistent and integrated management policies. There is much left to be done to transform both the existing historical archives and the current judicial records into efficient and user-friendly centers of juridical information. Based on the survey results, the Supreme Court has published recommendations for a long-term modernization process. The first priority is to develop Document Management Programs and coherent and comprehensive institutional policies in order to optimize the support that documentary archives provide to the Justice System. Other recommendations include: greater investment in archival equipment and personnel, as well as the creation of professional and technical accreditation for newly trained archivists; efforts by the courts to come up with efficient solutions for the electronic treatment of court documents; feasibility studies into the cost of electronic warehousing and document management; further periodic surveys; and the implementation of policies for the protection and preservation of Brazil’s documentary heritage.
The objective of ICT development in the judicial sector is to support the jurisdictional and administrative functions of the civil, criminal, labor and juvenile courts. Studies carried out by the judiciary have shown that the optimization of human and physical resources in the courts’ performance of their judicial duties is best realized with ICT tools. They have also shown that a stock of accumulated experience and the effective formulation and evaluation of new projects have provided support for the implementation of broad gauged computer systems. In 1987, an ICT system for the case records, processing documents, and for the Records of the Courts’ Current Account was implemented in the Labor Courts. In 1989, the Civil Courts were grouped together, and the ICT support for their 30 courts was integrated. These projects constitute the support base of the civil and labor court jurisdictions. Overall the development of ICT systems consisted of the following: (i) The implementation of jurisdictional and administrative management systems. (ii) Development of Juridical databases for Legislation, Jurisprudence and Doctrine. (iii) the interconnection of internal and external judicial institutions. Broadly speaking, the objectives of the ICT Model were to provide integrated support to judicial and administrative functions, and to develop a medium for monitoring and control so as to improve efficiency and rationalize resources. Presently in the capital city, the components of judicial ICT consist of ICT Management and Document Systems. ICT management consists in developing the Judicial Management Support system for the criminal courts. ICT Document Systems consist in the creation of jurisprudence and legislation databases. The applications of the latter are: the Management and Monitoring System, which includes the Records System, which records all the documents, appeals, cases and memoranda that pass through the courts; the Case Distribution System; the Record of Court Decisions, the Case and Procedural Monitoring System; the Reference System, which includes the database of the Civil and Labor Courts and the judicial Court-Files database; the Text Processing System, which operates in the Appellate Court in Santiago, the Civil Courts, the Labor and Juvenile Courts, and the Courts of First Instance and Mixed Jurisdiction; other management systems include the Current Account and the monitoring of criminal cases; and the Administrative Information System. Development policies were designed strategically in line with the priorities of Central Planning, Administration, Financing, Systems Development and User Support. Chile’s initial experience showed that solutions to Justice Administration problems could assist in the modernization of procedural norms; training; alternative conflict resolutions; administrative management and the apportionment of physical and financial resources. However, the current systems need to be consolidated for the systems to be expanded nationally. They need to be made compatible with the needs of judicial institutions, current procedural norms, and the available technology. A number of targets have already been reached for the development and application of systems. The rationalization of the management of court operations has been enhanced. There is an efficient exchange of information among all those involved in judicial processes. Compilation and monitoring of statistical information have been improved; print-outs and reports for monitoring tasks and planning studies are more efficiently obtained and circulated. The impact of the ICT systems on the management of the courts has not been evaluated as such. But analyses of and observations on a number of aspects of the daily operations of the courts confirm the success and the roll-on effect of ICT as a vital technological tool for the effective administration of justice. There are plans to update and expand these systems so as to have a national coverage of ICT solutions.
The success of a transition process depends on abandoning obsolete practices and juridical cultures, and taking up new standards to create an organizational structure with the vision necessary to guarantee a genuine State of Law. The Case Streamlining Center is the first measure that was undertaken on a national level in El Salvador to deal with judicial delays and to create a more timely judicial process in. The second measure was the establishment of mechanisms by an external agent in order to register and monitor judicial processes. The introduction of computer terminals in the Criminal Courts has made it possible to keep efficient records of information and to create databases which, in the short term, generates feedback of judicial processes, which can be referenced and recorded in the Case Monitoring System. In 1993, a survey was undertaken of the active files in the Judicial System for the purpose of gathering statistics on the cases that remained pending or unresolved. In 1994, the Review and Streamlining Center—now called the Case Streamlining Center—was created with a remit to efficiently clear up the pending case-load. 70% of the cases that enter the streamlining system are cases with an absent defendant. The 30% of cases with defendants present take up 80% of the time and labor of the courts, in order to comply with the deadlines that apply when an individual is detained. In order to facilitate and optimize the use of human resources, every operator in the streamlining process has the use of an on line PC, connected to the terminals of their respective supervisors. In 1996, a “Quality Control” platform was set up in order to establish working standards in the creation of databases. The long-term goal is the complete computerization of the criminal courts nationwide. This system serves as an efficient tool for gathering reliable data and for producing a structured output of information. The system was then expanded to include Family and Juvenile cases.
The use of Information Technology began in the early 1980s, and its Mainframe and P.C. applications have since been developed across the Federal and State Systems. A survey, undertaken by the National Council of the High Courts of Justice in 1999, gathered information on the respective stages of computerization of the Judiciaries of each of the Mexican States. The data obtained was collated and published for a National Conference held in Chihuahua in June of that year. Although results and targets inevitably varied from State to State, the National Conference nonetheless identified a common ground of general technological competence achieved by the majority of Mexican States. For instance, almost all the Mexican judiciaries (federal and state) have established a web-based network that enables them to share information and resources; they have benefited from the resources of the Internet (specifically email and web pages,) and they have used ICT to provide a wide range of information to Judicial Personnel. This includes information relating to matters of jurisprudence, excerpts from Supreme Court decisions, Federal Legislation, and the Official Gazette of Mexico. Some records of court proceedings have also been made available in this way. The Survey results made it possible for judicial officials to take stock of technical advances to date, and to examine the detailed results achieved in other States. In the State of Chihuahua, for example, where ITC projects began in September 1991, the Judiciary now has over 600 computer terminals, of which 265 are equipped with Pentium processors, 224 with 486 processors, and 128 with 386 processors. Three of its 14 Judicial Districts are currently connected by Internet, and there are plans underway to connect the head offices of every district by WAN. The web server systems currently in operation are Novell 4.1 and Windows NT 4.0. The State has also implemented the following systems: an integrated database system for gathering statistics on judicial activities, as well as systems for monitoring appeals; and recording decisions handed down by the Full Court; criminal, civil and family court proceedings; and criminal records. The State experiences, and the lessons from these have served to help identify two areas of particular importance for the prioritization of future ICT developments: the enhancement of the institutional capacity to plan, develop and implement initiatives; and the development of creative means for improving user access to the system. Activities designed for enhancing institutional capacity will include: the identification of new juridical applications of the client/server ambit, the creation of electronic proceedings or processes and the creation of archive databases. User access will be improved by means of initiatives such as the identification of documents by bar code, the creation of passwords for trial lawyers, and training to broaden user understanding of the potential of ICT applications.
During the last few years, the Venezuelan State has taken steps towards the modernization of the Justice Administration System in order to improve the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of the management of judicial processes. Traditionally, courts have operated with little or no technological support but now all is changing at a rapid pace. The focus of the reform effort includes legal changes, transparency enhancement, organizational efficiency and user access which has a seamless integration of ICT applications. The ICT measures are both directed at the supreme court and lower court levels in jurisdictional and administrative areas. Initiatives have included development of ICT master plan, full automation of the highest court in Caracas in 2000 and its interface with users, including on-line publication of decisions, judicial statistics and case status reports. Also financial and human resource management systems have been installed. Civil society related activities are also disseminated through web based applications (see at www.tsj.gov.ve) and onsite centers, including Center for Document Information and Citizen Orientation Office. In July 1999, the judiciary implemented a new Organizational Model and an integrated ICT Management System, Juris 2000, in Pilot Courts (first instance and appeal jurisdictions) in the cities of Barquisimeto and Barcelona. The medium-term objective is to apply them nationwide. The new Organizational Model, and the institution of new and improved working methods, imply a thorough cultural transformation of the Justice Administration System. The conceptual framework behind this ‘culture change’ is a tight link between organizational reform and technological advances. The IT management system is considered first and foremost a support tool for the Organizational Model. The Pilot Project therefore includes provision for sufficient institutional and personnel capacity to support and administrate newly integrated computerized processes. Juris 2000 has a number of specific functions. It serves as an aid to case processing by facilitating the production of interactive documents, the automatic integration of information stored in databases, as well as feedback to the databases of new information. It allows for the automatic “capture” of information once it has been entered into the System, thus avoiding the need for multiple or repeat data entries. Juris 2000 also supports the judicial decision process as system serves as a warehouse of information on legislation, doctrine and jurisprudence, including information produced in other parts of the judiciary. The documentary database permits a rapid compilation of documents using various sources and/or information captured from databases. Also, Juris 2000 has an integrated warning system that alerts judicial administrators about case delay. It also provides information on the current case-load, allowing for a better rationalized distribution of cases. Juris 2000 enables public access to judicial information that is in the public domain, either by remote access or in situ. Information can also be sent between judicial offices and institutions. Finally, the System can produce statistical or other reports in a variety of formats. It is also designed to accommodate future information needs. The plan is for it to be replicated the experience in all judicial districts nationwide. Salient technical features of the Juris 2000 are its: (i) integrated capability where every office of judicial support has its own IT module within the single entity of the system; (ii) adaptability whereby the system can be used for a single court or a group of courts, and is adjustable to legislative reforms without need for system changes; (iii) visual interface and user friendly screen operation that allows staff with little or no training run the system; (iv) consistency in ensuring homogeneity in judicial procedures, within and across the courts; (v) self-sufficiency as information can be entered directly and immediately into the System, without need for further steps. The Juris 2000 has various levels of security for dealing with different types of information. Users, likewise, have different levels of access. Security reviews and technical check-ups of the System can be undertaken remotely, and maintenance checks are therefore easier to carry out. Assessments and consultations with judges and staff have indicated efficiency improvements and enhanced transparency of the judicial process since the implementation of Juris 2000. Plans are underway to extend the system to other cities as part of the on-going judicial reform program.
|
Argentina
