Kerala High Court Inaugurated Its Statewide Training For E-Filing Through A Virtual Event

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday inaugurated its statewide training for e-filing system aimed at the District Judiciary in the State through a virtual event at 3:30 pm. 

Chief Justice S Manikumar inaugurated the event which was attended by several Judges, Judges of the Administrative and Computer Committees, and Registrars. 

In his inaugural address, the Chief Justice called the e-filing system a 'boon to the litigant community;  and that the training was aimed at preparing the judiciary for paperless and digital courts.

The Chief Justice also mentioned that through the system of e-filing, the judiciary was to have a huge saving on manpower. He added that the Kerala High Court has always been keen on adopting new trends in technology, concurrently requesting the participation of lawyers and clerks in the training.  

"Sixteen years ago, the E-committee of the Supreme Court of India formulated an action plan and a national policy for the Indian judiciary to enhance judicial machinery both quantitatively and qualitatively. Today, it is one step closer to becoming the reality," said the Chief Justice in his address. 

Computer Committee Chairman Justice A Muhammed Mustaque, Committee Members Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar, PB Suresh Kumar, Shaji P Chaly, and Raja Vijayaraghavan were also present during the inaugural function.

Judges of the Administrative Committee, namely Justices CT Ravikumar, K Vinod Chandran, SV Bhatti, and Alexander Thomas also graced the occasion with their presence.

The event was a culmination of enormous collective efforts taken by the IT Directorate under the supervision of the High Court Computer Committee and the leadership of the Chief Justice.

The IT Directorate has always been a forerunner in taking up challenging initiatives and delivering them on time. The five landmark initiatives by the IT team of the High Court inaugurated during this event are as follows:

• Statewide training on e-filing for advocates at the district level
• Online copy application module for district judiciary
• Solar power plants at the district courts of Thodupuzha, Kasargod, and Thalassery. 
• Upgraded network infrastructure in the district judiciary
• Workflow-based module for process service integrated with an instant mobile app designed and developed by NIC for district judiciary

The welcome address was delivered by the Registrar General of High Court, Sophy Thomas. 

"The pandemic presented unprecedented challenges to public health and the world of work. It changed the normal practices and procedures followed in all spheres of life, including the justice delivery system. However, the crisis caused by the pandemic compelled us to find means to overcome the situation with the aid of technology," she remarked. 

This was followed by the felicitation of the event by Advocate General of Kerala Gopalakrishna Kurup and Chairman of the Kerala Bar Council Joseph John.

"It is often quoted that adversities bring the best out of us. The Covid 19 pandemic, despite the challenges posed by it on all fronts, necessitated the use of technology as a vehicle for transformation," said the AG. 

He added, "The digital divide is a stark reality. May the anxieties and genuine grievances of the lawyering community be redressed through this mechanism."

The Chairman while offering his felicitation agreed with the AG and remarked that one of the major stakeholders caught in the digitalization was the litigating community, and communicated his hope that this training could effectuate this process.

The event came to a close with a Vote of Thanks delivered by the Director Of IT, Shaleena VG Nair expressing gratitude to the Chief Justice, all judges, lawyers, and Registrars for their contribution, participation, and encouragement in the process.  

The inaugural event was also graced with the esteemed presence of Senior Advocate Gopalakrishna Kurup (AG), Advocate TA. Shaji (Director General of Prosecution), Thomas Abraham (President, Kerala High Court Advocates Association), Senior Advocate. N.N. Sugunapalan (President, Kerala High Court Senior Advocates Association), Advocate P. Vijayakumar (ASG), and Advocate S.K Devi (President, Kerala Federation of Women Lawyers)

Additional Advocate General Ashok M Cherian, State Attorney Manoj Kumar N, Vice-Chairman of Bar Council of Kerala Anil Kumar MK,  and Registrars also attended the event.