Ekiti court unveils case management system for faster justice

Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to strengthening the administration of justice through technology-driven reforms.

According to a statement made available in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, on Sunday, the governor, who was represented by the Acting Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice, Gbemiga Adaramola (SAN), stated this at the official launch of the Nigeria Case Management System for the Ekiti State High Court in Ado Ekiti.

The NCMS is a centralised digital repository and electronic filing platform launched by the Supreme Court of Nigeria to track, manage and process civil and criminal proceedings electronically.

Oyebanji, who described the initiative as a significant milestone in the administration of justice in the state, said that the introduction of the system went beyond the deployment of software, as it represented a fundamental shift towards a more efficient and technology-driven judicial system.

The governor said, “Onboarding the state High Court onto the digital platform will address the bottlenecks associated with manual court processes and improve justice delivery.

“When our administration outlined our multi-pillar agenda for shared prosperity, we recognised that a stable, predictable and highly efficient judicial system is the bedrock of economic growth, social peace and investor confidence.”

He added that integration of court operations into the nationwide digital platform demonstrated the state’s commitment to innovation and good governance.

The governor lauded the State Chief Judge, Justice Lekan Ogunmoye, and the leadership of the Judiciary for their commitment to judicial reforms and the modernisation of court operations, saying adoption of the case management system and electronic filing application would reduce bureaucratic bottlenecks and ensure faster, more predictable judicial processes for lawyers and litigants.

The Speaker, Ekiti State House of Assembly, Adeoye Aribasoye, hailed the CJ for introducing the system, saying the initiative would ease the process of filing court cases and help prevent the misplacement of case files.

The speaker said, “The House of Assembly has adopted paperless operations and live broadcasts of plenary sessions through technological innovations,” adding that the executive and judiciary were also embracing digital transformation.

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Aribasoye described the development as a welcome step towards improving governance and institutional efficiency in the state.

Earlier, Justice Ogunmoye said electronic filing would make justice more accessible and align court operations with global technological developments.

The CJ, who said that the new system would facilitate faster justice delivery and reduce the workload of stakeholders, said the platform would integrate electronic filing, registration, scheduling, tracking and case management.

He, however, stressed the need for an appropriate legal framework to ensure the sustainability of the initiative, saying that the Ekiti State Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2014, as amended, the Ekiti State Administration of Civil Justice Law 2019 and the High Court of Ekiti State (Civil Procedure) Rules 2020 did not provide for electronic filing of court processes.

The CJ said the gap necessitated the issuance of practice directions to provide a legal basis for the new system.

He said that with the adoption and deployment of the NCMS in criminal and civil proceedings, only documents received and stored through the High Court’s NCMS electronic filing portal would constitute proper court records for new cases filed.

According to him, copies of the practice directions will be available at the High Court Library for a token fee.

The CJ expressed appreciation to Oyebanji for creating an enabling environment for the Judiciary to function effectively, as he also acknowledged the contributions of the Chief Judge of Borno State and Chairman of the Judiciary Information Technology Policy Committee, Justice Kashim Zannah, as well as judges, magistrates, registrars, ICT personnel, administrative staff and members of the Bar.

He recalled that the state judiciary inaugurated its Standing Committee on Information and Communication Technology Policy Implementation on July 5, 2021, to strengthen efficiency and promote transparency in case management.