On Thursday 30 July, the European Commission published its roadmap for a Communication on the Digitalisation of Justice in the EU, which is expected before the end of 2020.
The Commission says that the aim of this initiative is to steer and coordinate a process at EU level to accelerate the digitalisation of judicial procedures, and foster the interoperability of different national systems and the uptake of new technologies in the day-to-day functioning of judicial systems.
“The Covid-19 crisis has highlighted the need to launch and accelerate different actions related to the transformation of justice by employing digital technologies”, it says.
According to the roadmap, the Communication’s focus will be on highlighting existing problems with digital proceedings and outlining best practice, based on data from the EU Justice Scoreboard (see EUROPE 12525/21).
The Commission will also be presenting a number of ways of making cooperation more digital, focusing particularly on the funding and training needs required to promote the uptake of technologies by all concerned stakeholders.
It might therefore propose a “toolbox” approach and suggest starting “a process of reflection towards a legislative framework for digital cooperation in certain cross-border procedures regulated by EU law”.
As it believes that any appropriate legal framework would need to be underpinned by comprehensive IT solutions, the Commission might also present ideas for an “overall architecture” that would enable a range of existing IT solutions to be combined and re-used.
Lastly, the Communication might also include a section on digital cooperation between relevant EU institutions, agencies and bodies, such as Eurojust and the European Public Prosecutor's Office, as well as national authorities. “This is particularly important in the area of criminal justice, in which the lack of effective and swift communication channels is apparent”, says the Commission.
Interested parties have until September 10 to submit their comments at https://bit.ly/3fgo10r (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)