Investigating information technology and related processes in the civil and criminal justice systems

Abstract

Recently, the CSIR has been involved in two projects investigating information technology (IT) and related processes in the civil and criminal justice systems, one with the Department of Justice focusing on civil justice, and the other as part of a consortium addressing the Integrated Criminal Justice System (ICJS), which also includes the Departments of Welfare and Correctional Services, and the South African Police Service (SAPS). The first was funded by the Innovation Fund of the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology (DACST), and had the Department of Justice as a client. This project investigated the current and potential use of IT in court management, specifically regarding the Civil Courts and Special Courts (eg the Labour Court and Land Claims Court). Processes were identified for each different kind of Court, and the current use of IT established. Problems and needs were identified, with special emphasis on IT, but also considering the bigger environment where IT needed to fit in. On the second project, the CSIR was a part of the Mulweli consortium, consisting of domestic and international experts, which investigated the Integrated Criminal Justice System. The emphasis of the project was on the interactions between the four departments, and the required communication channels to support these, rather than on the processes within the departments themselves. The many business processes in these interactions were identified, and the existing and required IT architectures and infrastructures were identified. Migration projects to achieve the desired ICJS were identified at different levels (both within the Departments and between them), depending on their sizes, time frames and required resources. This paper sketches an overview of the IT and related processes in the civil and criminal justice systems.