IT solutions for the judiciary

As a long-standing partner to the judiciary at federal and state level, we support you with professional, end-to-end IT solutions. We are thoroughly familiar with the challenges involved in the digitalisation of the judiciary across the courts, the public prosecution service and the prison service.

The modern justice system in Germany

Digitalisation projects

Well over 210,000 employees in ministries of justice, senate administrations, at state and judicial IT service providers, as well as in courts, public prosecutors’ offices and the prison service, form the backbone of the modern justice system in Germany. Cross-state cooperation – ranging from the Conference of Ministers of Justice, through the E-Justice Council and the Federal-State Commission, to the IT Court Conference – is taking the justice system’s digitalisation projects to a new level. State consortia are, for example, working towards the joint modernisation of the ‘AuRegis’ registration procedure, the nationwide standardised land register database ‘dabag’ and the ‘GeFa’ joint specialist procedure, as well as the introduction of electronic case files in courts (e2A, eIP and eAS). Materna supports digitisation projects within the judiciary in all federal states and at federal level with professional and end-to-end IT solutions.

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Eine Person in einem formellen Anzug benutzt ein Tablet an einem Schreibtisch, der mit einer Waage, einem Hammer und Dokumenten geschmückt ist, was auf ein juristisches oder gerichtliches Umfeld hinweist.

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Justice Platform – Digital Courtrooms

“The introduction of electronic case files in courts does not yet constitute genuine digitisation of the justice system!” Yes, it is possible to conduct proceedings entirely without electronic case files. Proceedings without electronic case files have been possible in Belgium since 2017. Insolvency proceedings in Belgium are conducted entirely digitally and seamlessly between all parties to the proceedings. This significantly speeds up and shortens insolvency proceedings. This example from Belgium of a shared judicial communication platform used by all parties to the proceedings shows what a ‘digital proceedings space’ could look like in Germany too. We are supporting the judiciary in implementing a digital proceedings space in Germany as well, with the help of a judicial platform.

Key areas

There is a growing need for a standardised, nationwide electronic access system for members of the public. This is demonstrated, amongst other things, by the research report from the Federal Ministry of Justice (BMJ) on the ‘decline in the number of cases filed with the civil courts’. The presidents of the Higher Regional Courts, the Kammergericht, the Bavarian Higher Regional Court and the Federal Court of Justice are also calling for improved public access to justice in their ‘Discussion Paper on the Modernisation of Civil Procedure’. Pilot projects such as the ‘digitisation of legal proceedings’ or the ‘Digital Legal Application Centre’, commissioned by the BMJ, are intended to demonstrate what improved public access to justice might look like. Above all, such public services must be accessible, responsive, mobile-friendly and feature an appealing user experience (UX/UI). Materna is supporting the judiciary in implementing a wide range of projects within a “justice portal”.

The ever-accelerating development of legal tech applications within the judiciary raises numerous questions. Despite the complexity involved, the judiciary must keep pace with modern solutions from the private sector, particularly in so-called mass litigation. Air passenger rights and diesel-related lawsuits are current practical examples. Materna supports the judiciary using a tried-and-tested process model to identify use cases for subsequent implementation. With the help of the Generative AI Factory, Materna is setting new standards in the introduction of artificial intelligence within the judiciary.

The Justice Cloud is coming! The Federal Government’s digital strategy envisages a concept for a nationwide Justice Cloud by 2025. This requires well-coordinated cooperation between the federal and state governments. Kubernetes-based container platforms are the operating platforms of the present and the future! They are an indispensable link in the chain and are preparing judicial data centres for the sovereign ‘Justice Cloud’. We support the judiciary in implementing container platforms and on its journey towards a sovereign cloud. As experienced coaches and technology professionals, we support not only the systems but also take all staff members with us on this journey into the new digital age. Please also read ‘The Cloud Strategy for Public Administration’.