Proceedings of the 14th International Academic Conference, Malta

TRANSFORMING THE LEGAL PROFESSION THROUGH THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY IN COURTS: THE CASE OF BRAZIL

DENIS DE CASTRO HALIS

Abstract:

New Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have the potential of creating a revolution in the classical ways of administering judicial systems and providing judicial output to legal disputes. This potential, however, no longer needs to be only imagined. The Brazilian judiciary has started a pioneering – but still relatively silent and unknown - radical change in the way that lawyers, judges, and parties relate with each other and with the judicial bureaucracy. Part of the Brazilian legal scene is currently marked by emerging new theories, models of logic, software, and technologies which are being implemented in an attempt to reduce the time for the judiciary response to disputes and to eliminate its serious “clogs”. With millions of lawsuits in the various sections of the judiciary, the country is trying to streamline the judicial decision-making process and output of its courts at all levels. This interdisciplinary investigation proposes to describe and analyze the most important technical innovations that have been revolutionizing the way that judges, lawyers, and litigants act in the Brazilian context. The investigation is based on the analysis of the Brazilian courts websites, on direct interviews with legal professionals, and on reports published in the periodicals of the associations of legal professionals.

Keywords: Legal Professions, Judges and Courts, New Technologies, Judicial Decision Making, Brazil

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