IHC chief justice courtroom converted into paperless e-court

Courtroom No. 1 of the Islamabad High Court, the courtroom used by Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, has been converted into an e-court, replacing paper files with screens and digital records.

The Associated Press of Pakistan reported the change on Thursday, saying a paperless environment had been introduced in the chief justice's courtroom and that online hearings were being used alongside digital records. Daily Times reported that the courtroom had been formally designated an e-court and that digital and online proceedings had commenced there.

According to Daily Times, the Additional Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General and the Prosecutor General attended the first digital and e-court proceedings. Islamabad Prosecutor General Manzoor Jajja said the use of modern technology would help make judicial proceedings more transparent and would expedite the disposal of cases. He added that lawyers and litigants were being provided facilities for online access to judicial information, which would reduce reliance on physical court files.

Lawyers in Islamabad welcomed the initiative. Daily Times reported that they called the promotion of technology an important step toward bringing the administration of justice in line with modern requirements. The new arrangement allows case records to be viewed on screens installed in the courtroom and lets parties follow proceedings through online links.

The change makes the Islamabad High Court's senior-most courtroom one of the paperless courtrooms operating in Pakistan's superior courts, where digital records and video-link hearings have been introduced in stages. Neither report gave a date for the conversion, but both said the paperless system was now active.