Electronic case management, e-litigation systems for local courts this year

– as Judiciary moves to modernise operations

With the Judiciary of Guyana joining the shift towards technology in order to enhance access to justice, initiatives such as an electronic case management system for the Magistrates’ Courts and an e-litigation system for the High and Appeal Courts are scheduled to be rolled out this year.

Speaking at the launch of the 2023 Law Year recently, acting Chancellor of the Judiciary, Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards said innovation and technology would play a major role in efforts to modernise the Judiciary.
In fact, she noted that the local Judiciary has benefited tremendously from international conferences and training which have informed Guyana’s path forward in advancing technology and the modernisation of the local court systems.
One such initiative is the pilot electronic case management System that is slated to go live by the end of the first quarter of this year in the Magistrates’ Courts.
“Our case management system … will soon be rolled out in the Magistrates’ Courts and that will lead to efficiency in case management and the deposition of cases in the Magistrates’ Courts,” she stated.

According to the acting Chancellor, a feasibility study was done by a consultant from the United States, which is facilitating this project, and a needs assessment of all the Magistrates’ Courts and the Registry was done as well.
The Diamond Magistrate’s Court will house the hub for the technological framework for this case management system.
In February 2021, the US Embassy in Georgetown had explained that the development of this automated court case management system would help Guyana’s Judiciary ensure criminal cases were handled expeditiously, reduce the case backlog, and increase public trust and confidence in the justice system. The court case management system will utilise a shared, open-source, and cost-effective technology to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of Judges and court staff by automating document production, improving processes, and facilitating data sharing.
The US State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs is supporting this project, and the National Center for State Courts will be directly involved in the implementation stage alongside the Judiciary of Guyana. It was noted that some US400,000 would be invested in the development of the system.

E-filing
Meanwhile, acting Chief Justice Roxane George further disclosed that the Judiciary has also been working on developing an e-litigation system – funded by the Guyana Government.
“We have also been working assiduously with our consultant – CrimsonLogic out of Singapore – on the development of an e-litigation system for the Court of Appeal and High Court. The development of the system is almost completed for the Court of Appeal and should go live by the end of this [2023 first] quarter,” Justice George noted.
The acting Chief Justice further noted that the consultants were currently in Guyana to commence work on the High Court system. They started working on Wednesday and are aiming to have this system ready to go live by the last quarter of this year.
The Guyana Judiciary is part of the worldwide shift to the use of technology in courts and has participated in a host of international Court Technology Conferences over the past two years.
In fact, the Judiciary has been the beneficiary of a host of programmes funded by various bilateral partners of Guyana.
Under the Judicial Reform and Institution Strengthening (JURIST) Project – a multi-year (2014-2023) regional Caribbean judicial reform initiative funded under an arrangement with the Government of Canada – Guyana has received 10 digital court recording units along with other equipment.
Additionally, the JURIST project was instrumental in aiding the local Judiciary in its public education campaign during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to inform the public of the court’s operations.
According to the acting Chancellor, while all operations within the Judiciary will not be completely automated, Judges and Magistrates will be using the necessary software and technology available to conduct their work.
“So, we will have a hybrid system, but heavy emphasis would be on digitalisation and electronic case filings will continue as [well as] online trials…” Justice Cummings-Edwards stated.