A total of 116 courts have recently been automated, raising the nationwide count to 228. This initiative aims to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of recording court proceedings.
At the third Chief Justice’s Meeting with the Judicial Press Corps (JPC), Mr. Noble Kekeli Nutifafa, Director of ICT at the Judicial Service, reported that as of July 2024, 71,781 cases had been filed through the e-Justice system.
The e-Justice, also known as Paperless Courts, is part of the government’s e-Transform Programme designed to modernize the court’s manual filing processes.
The e-Justice system facilitates e-filing of cases, e-payment, and document requests related to court decisions. The initiative is set to be expanded to all high courts across the country. Additionally, an e-bail tracking system has been developed to monitor surety documents and track the movement of documents within the Registries.
Mr. Nutifafa highlighted the introduction of a Document Management System aimed at improving information retrieval, preservation, data management, cost efficiency, transparency, and disaster recovery.
Upcoming projects include the implementation of e-signatures/digital signatures, court alerts and notifications, National Transcription Centers, an Electronic Case Management System, a Digitalised Land Database, and a speech-to-text mechanism.
Chief Justice Gertrude Sackey Torkornoo announced that on August 6, 2024, the Small Claims Debt Recovery Courts would be launched in the Greater Accra and Ashanti Regions.
These courts will initially operate on a pilot basis and have been established with the support of Quick Credit and Investment Micro-Credit Limited. The goal is to expedite trials and reduce the backlog of cases.
The Chief Justice also noted that the Judicial Service is focusing on digitizing its operations to address land litigation issues. An expert committee, including judges and surveyors, will be formed to develop strategies aimed at reducing land-related disputes.
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