ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa has reconstituted the National Judicial Automation Committee (NJAC) to improve the efficiency of judiciary in Pakistan.
According to the statement issued by the SC PRO on Friday, the committee will be headed by Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, a judge of the Supreme Court, and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, another SC judge, will be a member. The judges from the High Courts and the Federal Shariat Court will also be part of the committee.
The NJAC will work towards the digitalisation of the court’s processes and records, introducing mobile applications for better access to justice and improve case management.
The committee aims to automate and integrate the judiciary and also introduce Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the legal processes and research. It will prepare a national plan based on technology and AI to improve the efficiency of service delivery of the judiciary.
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Justice Mansoor believes that the justice sector in Pakistan should take advantage of the new developments in technology. The world has moved from the age of the industrial revolution to the era of technological transformation, and the justice sector in Pakistan needs to invest in state-of-the-art digital infrastructure, modern training programmes, and robust measures for better administration of justice.
Justice Mazhar thinks that the digitisation of the justice sector is only the beginning of the transformative change they envision for the legal system. As they move forward, they remain committed to continually enhancing their digital capabilities, further improving access to justice, and ensuring a transparent and efficient legal process for all.
Justice Shah was a judge and later chief justice of the Lahore High Court during his tenure established a Resource Centre and launched a distinctive automation project that resulted in the successful deployment of Case Flow Management System. Similarly, Justice Mazhar took several initiatives to equip the High Court of Sindh with IT technology.
The NJAC is a sub-committee of the National Judicial Policy Making Committee (NJPMC), which is an apex body responsible for improving the performance of the administration of justice, harmonising the judicial processes and standards, and ensuring a skilled and efficient judiciary.
The chairman of NJPMC is the chief justice of Pakistan. The Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan acts as the Secretariat of the NJPMC and supports NJAC in its work.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023