Some courts in the Australian state of New South Wales will be hearing cases online under a new justice system where judges receive lawyers' arguments online and answer in real time.
Some courts in the Australian state of New South Wales will be hearing cases online under a new justice system where judges receive lawyers\' arguments online and answer in real time.
The system, known as JusticeLink, will be the world's first operational online justice says NSW attorney general John Hatzistergos who told reporters his government plans to roll out the system fully in the state within the next twelve months.
With lawyer's arguments sent to the judge by email Mr Hatzisgeros says JusticeLink will help unclog court schedules by "saving millions of dollars in costs and countless hours spent in the courtroom".
"Traditionally, quite a few court appearances could be required to decide procedural matters before the hearing or trial could begin," Mr Hatzistergos said to reporters.
"JusticeLink will allow prosecutors and defence lawyers to log into a bulletin board, where they will type their arguments."
"The judge will be alerted to their posts by email and be able to log in and make determinations in real time. While the time-honoured traditions of our legal system will remain intact, JusticeLink will streamline the process, saving an enormous amount of time and money."
The A$48 million (US$43 million) has already been tested by the state's Supreme Court, who have held 167 hearings on civil legal matters. Nine firms have already tested JusticeLink, filing over 11,500 documents.
President of the NSW Law Society Hugh Macken said lawyers generally welcomed the new system though added that privacy was a concern.
"It presents an enormous opportunity to reduce costs and the bureaucracy associated with the registration and filing of court documents," he said to the Age newspaper. "There are unique challenges in respect to privacy and ensuring there is control over the documents."
The online justice system will be used for mostly preliminary procedural court matters such as bail applications with committal proceedings and trials still heard in person.
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