ISLAMABAD, September 24 — Pakistan’s judiciary is set to introduce e-filing for family cases on a pilot basis in selected courts across all provinces and the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), as part of a wider push to standardise and digitise court processes.
The plan was reviewed at a meeting of the National Judicial Automation Committee (NJAC), chaired by Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Yahya Afridi, according to a Supreme Court press release issued on Thursday.
The committee discussed the implementation strategy for electronic filing of cases and reviewed proposed standard templates designed to establish a uniform digital filing system across the country’s judicial system.
Chief Justice Yahya Afridi told the committee that family cases would be the first category covered under the pilot e-filing programme in selected courts in all four provinces and Islamabad.
He also briefed members on the ICUN initiative, titled “One Case, One Identity,” which is designed to assign every case a unique identity that remains with it throughout its judicial lifecycle.
According to the Supreme Court, relevant stakeholders have already been consulted and a preliminary draft of the initiative has been shared with the NJAC for detailed review and refinement. It will subsequently be submitted to the National Judicial (Policy Making) Committee for final consideration.
Single E-Filing Template Planned Nationwide
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, chairman of the NJAC, led deliberations on the proposed e-filing template and stressed the need for a single comprehensive format without provincial variations.
The proposed template is intended for adoption across all provinces and the Islamabad Capital Territory and will be aligned with relevant provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure.
It is also being designed for use by judges, court staff, lawyers and litigants.
NJAC members were asked to examine the proposed template from legal and operational perspectives and submit their recommendations within two weeks.
The committee aims to develop a secure and user-friendly e-filing framework that can be implemented consistently across different jurisdictions.
Judicial Data Dashboard Reviewed
The NJAC also reviewed the recently launched dashboard for real-time tracking of judicial data.
Members informed the meeting that the respective high courts were participating in the initiative and their IT directorates were updating the required data.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, however, expressed concern over reports that data from prison departments was arriving about a month late, affecting the effectiveness of real-time monitoring.
He directed the Secretary of the Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan to take up the issue with the relevant authorities on a priority basis and streamline reporting to ensure the dashboard remains current.
The Supreme Court said the digital initiatives are intended to standardise judicial processes, securely identify cases, improve access to judicial data and make court services more efficient and accessible.
The NJAC meeting was attended by judges from the Supreme Court and high courts, as well as senior judicial and administrative officials.