Fairness and social justice are two key concerns that surround the proliferation of technology in the courtroom. Wallace (1) notes that “while the technology itself is neutral” problems can arise through “disparities in access, resources and lack of common operating protocols”. From this may arise situations where the technology is used “as a weapon rather than a tool” on the part of the better resourced party. This is not a new concern for litigation in Australia, well resourced parties have always had the potential to swamp potential litigants, it simply opens a new avenue through which they may achieve this.
Equality of access will need to be a key concern of the courts in moving forward, with the Courts taking an active role in the establishment of a level playing field.
(1) Wallace, A. Technology and the Judiciary: The Use of Technology in the Criminal Trial Process. Paper presented at the 4th National Outlook Symposium on Crime in Australia, New Crimes or New Responses, Canberra, 2001.
Courtrooms will need to take into consideration the sort of factors that the University of New South Wales seemingly failed to take into account in the construction of their new building to house the Faculty of Law. Adequate power points will need to be provided and network connectivity should be made available (2), either through LAN ports or, preferably, through the provision of a wireless network. In the move towards electronic legal resources it would seem an anomaly that litigants would still be required to bring bound copies of judgments to Court for the adjudicator’s perusal.
The security of wireless networks and of electronically stored information generally are further concerns that must be taken into account.
(2) Report of the Australian Law Reform Commission, Issues Paper 23: Technology - What it Means for Federal Dispute Resolution, May 2002