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E-Justice Council

Digitalisation is one of the greatest challenges for our society in the 21st century. The associated transformation in all areas of life can only succeed working together, with people always at the focus.

The information technologies employed in the justice system should reflect the current state of science and technology and must not lag behind those used in the private sector. In the interests of our justice system employees and our citizens, the user-friendliness, ergonomics and accessibility of the new justice system applications are a matter of particular concern to me. Of course, the digital sovereignty of the judiciary and the sustainable use of information technology (green IT) also play an important role on the path to the future.

In this respect, it is important, among other things, to consistently pursue modern technologies such as service-oriented architectures, cloud computing and container platforms, as well as the implementation of a uniform IT governance structure, and to rely on open standards and interfaces as well as open source software wherever possible. Finally, the still divergent IT landscape of the judiciary should increasingly be standardized in nationwide projects to avoid unnecessary redundancies and multiple developments.

The ongoing digitization of the judiciary system must be designed in such a way that, despite all the improvements brought about by technical innovation, people's rights to freedom and participation in society will always be safeguarded. While the availability of digital legal services from the state is constantly evolving, compliance with data protection regulations and IT security standards to protect the rights of our citizens must not be disregarded. With this in mind, it is also important to explore the possibilities and limitations of the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the field of justice. Particularly because the potential for discrimination associated with AI is not always obvious, I would like to draw your attention especially to making the use of AI exclusively free of any form of discrimination - be it on the grounds of race or ethnic origin, gender identity, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation.

The e-Justice Council is already making a significant contribution to all of these issues and is promoting them in particular in the nationwide IT projects of the justice system such as the Common Specialist Procedure (GeFa), the modern electronic commercial register procedure (AuRegis) and the nationwide uniform database land register (dabag).

In addition, cooperation between the judiciary and the other departments - while preserving its special importance as the third branch of authority - can create further synergy effects, which is why I am very happy to maintain the close exchange with the IT Planning Council that has been established for years.

With the mission of the e-Justice Council understood in this way as an important digitization body in the federal structure of the Federal Republic of Germany, I look forward with confidence to a digital future of the judiciary for our citizens.

Dr. Daniela Brückner

Dr. Daniela Brückner

State Secretary, Ministry of Justice of the federal state of North-Rhine Westphalia
E-justice Council chairwoman