Electronic Litigation (e-litigation) In The Federal Supreme Court Of Ethiopia And Access To Justice

This paper discusses on the e-litigation system in the Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia and accessrnto justice. As a basic right and as a means to secure other human rights, the concept of justice hasrnbeen one of the most discussed issues in the human rights discourse. There are many barriers tornaccess to justice. To deal with such hurdles, especially the physical and financial barriers,rntechnologies are introduced in the Ethiopian justice system. In particular, the Federal SupremernCourt has taken the initiative to support its judicial services with technologies. The main purpose ofrnthe research is to find out how the e-litigation system is affecting effective access to justice. Whetherrnthe system is based on human rights-based approach or not, is also discussed in the research.rnThe paper is structured in five chapters. The notion ‘access to justice’ and human rights basedrnapproach are discussed. Effective access to justice includes equally accessible justice system withrnjust results and in conformity with human rights standards. Normative framework, legal awareness,rnaccess to legal services and effective enforcement of decisions are manifestations of effective accessrnto justice. The adjudication system must conform to human rights standards and due process of law.rnThe e-litigation system, especially videoconferencing litigations and e-filing services of FSC, whichrnare under the scope of the research, are also raised in detail. The findings revealed the benefits andrnthe challenges of the system. Creating physical proximity to judicial services and minimizing costrnand time of litigants and government are the main benefits of the system. But Technical challengesrnhave made court litigations difficult and litigants’ right to have a fair trial is compromised. Thernprinciples of due process of law are also breached due to lack of audio and video quality, repetitiverninterruptions of proceedings and adjournments. It has been also found out that the program is notrnformulated in a human-rights based approach. Justice delay, the imbalance between oppositionrnparties, the limitation on free and well conducted proceedings, compromising open trial and thernabsence of laws and regulations are the challenges of the system.rnIn conclusion, technology is not the final solution for the problems in the justice sector. The gaps ofrnthe e-litigation system must be filled by actors of the justice sector. In addition the already existingrnproblems in the justice sector have aggravated the challenges of the system. So, the researcherrnrecommended that the program must be reformulated in a human rights-based approach and thernnetwork capacity of the Court must be upgraded. Laws and regulations must be drafted to guide thernsystem. The system has enduring benefits; but its challenges on effective access to justice must berntackled if it needs to serve its purpose of bringing effective and efficient justice.

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