New FRA report on the digitalisation of justice and fundamental rights
The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) published the report Digitalising Justice: a fundamental rights-based approach, which is available on FRA website. Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini contributed to the report by conducting the research in Italy.
The report is the result of comparative research conducted in seven EU countries (Austria, Estonia, France, Italy, Latvia, Poland and Portugal) on 31 digital tools (including AI tools) in use in different judicial systems. Experts, judges, prosecutors, lawyers and other legal professionals were interviewed, with the aim of understanding how these tools are used, and the impact they can have on the protection of the fundamental rights of people who come into contact with the judicial system.
As highlighted in the report, digitalisation offers significant opportunities to improve efficiency and access to justice, but it must be accompanied by robust safeguards that protect fundamental rights and ensure equal access to justice for all. By identifying risks early, investing in skills and training, and building in safeguards from the outset, effective judicial systems can be built. This will enable judicial professionals to use new digital tools with confidence and competence.
"Digitalisation holds great promise for justice systems. It can make justice faster, easier and more accessible. But to truly harness its benefits, we must carefully assess its full impact on fundamental rights" said FRA Director Sirpa Rautio. "We must also bridge the digital divides and ensure access to justice for all, so that no one is left behind" she added.
As the Italian member of the multidisciplinary network of experts FRANET, FGB conducted the research in Italy. Thirty interviews were conducted with justice practitioners, experts and civil-society organisations on five selected use cases of particular relevance to the various areas of justice (civil, criminal and juvenile, as well as voluntary jurisdiction).
