E-Justice system crash prompts Bar Association concerns

Following the crash of the e-justice system within a day of its launch on Monday, the audit office will next week send a report to the IT department of the deputy ministry for research and innovation laying out its observations of the system.

The Bar Association has given the ministry until Tuesday to iron out at least the major kinks after lawyers were unable to service their clients using the much-touted system and had to go back to physically registering paperwork in some instances.

Prior to Monday’s big launch, the government said the e-justice system would mark “the transition to the new digital era in the field of justice” and benefit the operation of the courts.

It was designed to “enhance the efficiency and quality of the judicial system” with savings in time and costs for all users, more secure storage of digitised documents, possibilities for easier file searches and simultaneous viewing by more users, payment security, saving on working hours, better utilisation of staff and immediate communication between connected agencies, lawyers and litigants about the progress of cases.

However, it all came crashing down within the first day, leading to a decision by the Supreme Court to allow physical registrations again even after a new law had been passed to govern e-justice registrations, the Electronic Justice Procedural Regulation of 2024.

Lawyers were encouraged, where possible, to use the e-justice system while the ministry worked on fixing it and if they could not manage to register their cases due to technical issues, then physical registrations would be allowed but only if it was absolutely necessary, the court said.

The court said intense efforts were being made to resolve the problems. They were purely technical and beyond its jurisdiction but did affect the proper functioning of the judicial system, which necessitated its involvement.

The Bar Association also sounded the alarm about the consequences, saying it would affect justice if the problems were not fixed. It also warned that if the system was down for an extended period, it would not be tolerated, and lawyers would return to the old system to perform their duties. “It makes the work of law firms difficult and affects citizens’ right of access to justice,” it said.

“The state should take full responsibility and deliver the functional and easy-to-use system, which was promised… The modernisation of justice should be consistent and not sloppy, which leads only to anachronistic solutions.”

Responding on X late Thursday, Auditor-General Odysseas Michaelides said his office would be filing a report to the ministry next week “with our observations and findings in principle”.

The ministry said in an announcement that “intensive efforts are being made to solve the problems as soon as possible” in consultation with the contracting company.