Documents for everyoneand Justice for all

FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVICE JUSTICE

Monique Beuken, Commission for the Modernisation of the Judiciary (CMOJ)Phedra Clouner, Federal Public Service Justice

Plan of the presentation

I. Modernisation of the courtsa. The institutional contextb. An ideal player: the Commission for the

Modernisation of the Judiciary

II. The Justscan projecta. Context and aim of the projectb. Solution adoptedc. Methodologyd. Implementation and prospects

I. Modernisation of the courts

I. Modernisation of the courtsa. The institutional context

Minister of Justice

Committee for modernisation of

the judiciary

Federal Public Service Justice

Judiciary

High Council of Justice

I. Modernisation of the courtsb. An ideal player: the Committee for

Modernisation of the Judiciary

• Area of competence: all action relating to modernisation of management of the judiciary

• Mixed composition• Player in the change process• Support for judicial and administrative players

involved in the reform

• Working method:• Define general objectives for modernisation• Develop / support concrete projects• Active cooperation with the other players:

partnership agreements• Cooperation agreement with the Minister of Justice

I. Modernisation of the courtsb. An ideal player: the Committee for

Modernisation of the Judiciary

A few projects:• Analysis of allocation of the judiciary's financial resources

from 1995 to 2007• Study of the cost of court products• Assessment of the workload of judges and clerks of the court• Description of the duties of court staff• Installation of communications tools• etc.

I. Modernisation of the courtsb. An ideal player: the Committee for

Modernisation of the Judiciary

II. Justscan... an example of active cooperation with

the ICT Department

II. Justscana. Context and aim of the project

Context: The judicial case file• A case file =

• Folders • Subfolders • From a few dozen pages to several hundred thousand pages• List of the main documents and information in the file (index)

• Consultation of the case file or parts of the case file by the parties • All parties can request a copy of the case file• Sites located throughout Belgium

II. Justscana. Context and aim of the project

Reasons for the project:• Cope with requests for copies of large case files.• Increase the availability of case files.• Avoid wasting time due to transferring, finding or sorting case

files.• Deal with storage problems.• Facilitate handling of the largest or most complex case files.• To prevent loss or destruction of documents.

II. Justscana. Context and aim of the project

Aim of the project• Convert judicial case files currently in paper

format into electronic format• Provide a search tool for use by judges, court

staff and the parties

II. Justscanb. Solution adopted - method of operation

Case files closed after the

preliminary inquiry

Newcase files

JIOR / Court of First Instance

MFP:scanning + printingCirculation of judicial

case files

Control of sourcesHighly integrated

Numerous references

II. Justscanb. Solution adopted - The products

I.R.I.S.Barcoder

I.R.I.S.PDF Server

I.R.I.S.DocCenter

II. JustScanb. Solution adopted - functions

• Imaging• Indexing (Manual OCR - classification scheme)• Management of versions• Search• Consultation• Distribution/publication• Printing • Management of storage and storage media• Export of case files on request on optical media• Management of access rights• Links between case files• Inventory generated automatically

II. JustScanc. Methodology

Approach in stages (1)• Stage A: Study• Stage B: First pilot site

• Brussels Appeal Court and Court of First Instance• Stage C: Four other pilot sites

• Appeal courts and courts of first instance: Antwerp, Mons, Bruges, Liège

• Scope: criminal case files, from the time of creation at the appeal court or criminal court.

II. JustScanc. Methodology

Approach in stages (2)• Check whether it is appropriate to deploy this type of

technology• Reduce risks

• of premature design,• functions not suited to requirements

• Offer users visible signs of progress• Facilitate acceptance of the system

II. JustScanc. Methodology

Work groups• Determine requirements• Validate analyses• Validate mock-ups and prototypes• Tests by users• Functioning in workshops• Analysis workshops• Validation workshops

II. JustScanc. Methodology

Change management• Principles of the support offered

• Be present, willing to listen and participate• Provide regular progress reports on the project• Provide the training required for the new working methods• Support court employees during and after the project (organize work

sessions, briefings etc.)• Support is an continuous process throughout the project

II. JustScanc. Methodology

Crucial elements for success• Choice of the external partner• Strong backing from the management• Involvement of users from the start of the project• Clear and precise communication between the teams

and within the teams• Expectations determined correctly• Identification of risks • Stable and dedicated project infrastructure

Implementation: a concrete example• The Ghislenghien case file

• 42 boxes (in French)• 42,848 pages• ± 800 parties• 150 DVD copies (as well as access to the secure extranet

site)• 0 hard copies (in Mons)• = 6,427,200 sheets of paper = 12,855 reams saved

II. Justscand. Implementation and prospects

II. Justscand. Implementation and prospects

Implementation• Consultation of the electronic case file by lawyers at

the clerk's offices• Case file transmitted in electronic format to other

authorities not yet involved• Creation of a knowledge base• Future consultation by prisoners

II. Justscand. Implementation and prospects

Prospects• New sites• New requests for functions • Integration with business applications• Part of a more comprehensive plan: electronic case

files accessible to all parties

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