Administration of justice

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International forum on online courts: a reflection by HMCTS

This article gives an overview of ‘The cutting edge of digital reform’ conference, jointly hosted by HM Courts and Tribunals Service and the Society for Computers and Law.

About the author: Kevin Gallagher is digital director at HMCTS.

In early December, HMCTS co-hosted the inaugural international forum on online courts with counterparts at law-tech charity, the Society for Computers and Law. The event, hosted at law firm DLA Piper’s London oÿces, ran over two days and provided an opportunity to showcase the cutting edge of digital reform from jurisdictions around the world. Over 20 countries were represented at the forum, from USA to China, from Singapore to Australia, from Canada to India and many more in-between, and I wished to take the opportunity to reflect on a fantastic event.

The agenda

The first day of the ground-breaking forum was devoted to finding out what is going on at the cutting edge of court technology around the world. A range of keynote speakers and global snapshot panels focused on a broad array of issues that those designing and using online courts across the world are facing. Topics included submission of legal evidence and argument online, online decision-making by judges, online dispute resolution within court systems, online help and diagnostics for court users, and other advanced technologies.

In the second half of the conference, we looked forward into the 2020s and discussed some of the central issues that will face policymakers, judges, technologists and lawyers, who are planning or introducing online courts. These discussions took the form of four expertly chaired panel sessions, which looked at open justice and fair trials, technology platforms and obstacles, AI, and challenges to policymakers.

Conference themes

For me, there were three striking themes that came out of the sessions from across the forum:

  • We should continue to always put the user at the heart of what we are doing. This is what really works. It enables us to get under the skin of key issues, talk to people from the very beginning, and harness the insight to create intuitive systems that benefit the user and those that operate them, such as legal professionals and judges.
  • Be bold. We should not simply automate our old ways of working or bolt technology onto traditional court processes, but truly transform the system and exploit the power of technology to create access to justice for all. By starting from scratch, it enables us to design away from restrictions that are embedded into processes which are currently there, and build futureproofed, flexible services. Here at HMCTS, we are trying to do this already, but it is about recommitting to focusing on how people want to use the system in years to come rather than starting from how they work at the moment.
  • Use data to make court processes more accessible, and truly open up the system to make it more accessible for those that use it. Again, making better use of data in capturing it, increasing its accessibility and using it to enhance the services that we are building is an area that HMCTS is placing a huge emphasis on. Its importance in designing digital systems was made crystal clear across the two days.

I was inspired by the ideas and energy in the room during the whole event, and found it fascinating to speak with people from a range of perspectives, from experts in the legal space to technology thought leaders or experts in the administrative field. I had never attended a forum where so many jurisdictions were represented, with so many exciting projects coming to the forefront. This global blend, I felt, really enhanced the power of the conversations that were going on over the two days, and I hope that this is just the beginning of an international community of court reformers.

Common challenges and legacy

Something that I was reassured by was that although we are delivering a huge reform programme in this country, the challenges we are tackling certainly are not unique: other countries have faced and are facing similar questions, so we are certainly not alone. We are part of, and I believe leaders within, a global movement of court digitalisation; however, the fact that other countries have approached similar challenges in a variety of different ways certainly gives us food for thought in England and Wales, and we will continue to explore these too.

The international community that was cultivated in London in December must continue to talk and continue to learn from each other. We must keep these conversations going, and I know that our CEO, Susan Acland-Hood, and Professor Richard Susskind, president of the Society for Computers and Law, are already giving thought to what this will look like, to enable further discussion and grow the court-reform community.

In future, we will continue to listen to representatives from around the world on how modern ways of working and new technologies are being harnessed to deliver what people want, ie, systems that work with and for them; that they can use when and how they want; and make what can seem like diÿcult and unwieldy processes (often being navigated at diÿcult times in people’s lives) straightforward and understandable. This is where the value of the forum’s legacy will really lie. Readers can view a range of content from the international forum, including speeches, presentations and video reflections, at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/international-forum-ononline-courts-3-and-4-december-2018

HMCTS reform events programme

HMCTS is planning events to raise awareness and contribute to the progress of different aspects of the reform programme.

HMCTS will host a series of face-to-face and online events, in various formats, providing a range of opportunities to get involved. Wherever possible, HMCTS will live stream face-to-face events and enable participation online. For further details visit: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hmcts-reform-events-programme

HMCTS is also creating opportunities to hear your views and feedback and enable you to ask questions about the progress and ambitions of specific projects.


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