FCT CJ, Charges Judges To Be Technology-Driven As He Unveils Speech Recording Machine & Video Transcription System

The Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Justice
Ishaq Usman Bello, on Wednesday, inaugurated a digital speech
recording machine and video transcription system for quick and
efficient court proceedings, declaring that with this judges will
no longer write in longhand.

Speaking during the inauguration Justice Bello stated that
technology had become an integral aspect of daily living, adding
that the earlier the judiciary leverage on technological
advancements, the better for it as “it has become glaring that
technology was now and the future.”

According to the CJ, the court, which he described as the
epicentre of legal contestation, was striving to meet the demand of
time by leveraging on technology to make it work easier and justice
more accessible.

“It is on this note, that the court which is the epicentre of
legal contestation is equally striving to meet the demands of time
by leveraging on available technology to make work easier and
justice more accessible in a healthy and friendly atmosphere,”
Justice Bello said.

He submitted that the tradition of judges writing in longhand
made proceedings slow and sloppy, coupled with its health hazard on
them.

Bello added that it is the duty of the court to see to the
expeditious and fair determination of disputes in such a manner
that inspires confidence.

The CJ stated that giving this important role of the court, it
would not be out of place for it to take a leading role in
deploying technology with a view to facilitating its core mandate
of determining disputes as quickly as inexpensively possible.

“It has been the tradition of judges to write in longhand. This
makes proceedings slow and sloppy not to talk of the health
challenges it poses over time such as me scale soreness, back pain,
numbness in the arms and fingers and pain in the shoulders to
mention but a few.

“Like every other institution, courts are made up of people and
our duty is to see to the expeditious and fair determination of
disputes in a manner that inspires confidence.

“Judging by this important role, it is not out of place for the
court to take a leading role in ensuring the responsible deployment
of technology, in the area of our expertise with the aim of
facilitating the success of the court’s mandate which is
determining disputes as quickly and as inexpensively possible,” he
said.

He declared that it was against that backdrop that the FCT
judiciary had commenced the digitalisation of its courts, adding
that with the complete audio/speech to text transcription solution,
judges would no longer take proceedings in longhand.

“Permit me to acknowledge that speech-to-text is not only a
growing technology worldwide. It is packed with massive potentials
to fundamentally change the way things are dining in our courtrooms
today.

“In simple terms, this is a technology that records the audio
content of court proceedings and then converts these audio contents
into typed words,” he informed.

According to the CJ, what was stalled additionally had the
ability to make the content available for playback at any time and
from anywhere.

He added that: “A judge can watch, replay court proceedings at
any time, fast forward, pause and even assess the demeanour of
witnesses from his comfort zone.”

The system, Justice Bello informed, was supported by a 2
Terabyte server and additional cloud storage.

He declared that the system would not only save the time and
energy consumed by judges while writing and taking notes in
longhand during trials but also speed up proceedings by the freed
time being put into more valuable uses.

“It will be impossible to miss words and important details as it
is sometimes the case while taking notes by hand,” he said.

The CJ, however, noted that there are challenges with the
system, including the issue of different accents, speech patterns
and cadence and homophones.

Justice Bello then disclosed that the installation of the
speech-to-text system was the first step to complete digitisation
of the FCT High Court, informing that the next step would be the
online filing of cases and visual hearing platforms.

Explaining the application, the project consultant, Ms Joycelyn
Adah, said that the call for innovation to accelerate the delivery
in the justice system cannot be over-emphasised.

She informed that the system would record and convert speeches
to the text as well as store the original record with up to 70 per
cent accuracy.

“This Application will be able to accurately record and convert
speech made in the courtroom to text, it will also automatically
generate a text document once speech commences.

“It will store the original record and transcribe the speech
into equivalent text with up to 70 per cent accuracy. It also has a
video component that comes in handy in this era of migration to
virtual Courtrooms,” the consultant stated.

The Chief Judge of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Justice
Ishaq Usman Bello, on Wednesday, inaugurated a digital speech
recording machine and video transcription system for quick and
efficient court proceedings, declaring that with this judges will
no longer write in longhand.

Speaking during the inauguration Justice Bello stated that
technology had become an integral aspect of daily living, adding
that the earlier the judiciary leverage on technological
advancements, the better for it as “it has become glaring that
technology was now and the future.”

According to the CJ, the court, which he described as the
epicentre of legal contestation, was striving to meet the demand of
time by leveraging on technology to make it work easier and justice
more accessible.

“It is on this note, that the court which is the epicentre of
legal contestation is equally striving to meet the demands of time
by leveraging on available technology to make work easier and
justice more accessible in a healthy and friendly atmosphere,”
Justice Bello said.

He submitted that the tradition of judges writing in longhand
made proceedings slow and sloppy, coupled with its health hazard on
them.

Bello added that it is the duty of the court to see to the
expeditious and fair determination of disputes in such a manner
that inspires confidence.

The CJ stated that giving this important role of the court, it
would not be out of place for it to take a leading role in
deploying technology with a view to facilitating its core mandate
of determining disputes as quickly as inexpensively possible.

“It has been the tradition of judges to write in longhand. This
makes proceedings slow and sloppy not to talk of the health
challenges it poses over time such as me scale soreness, back pain,
numbness in the arms and fingers and pain in the shoulders to
mention but a few.

“Like every other institution, courts are made up of people and
our duty is to see to the expeditious and fair determination of
disputes in a manner that inspires confidence.

“Judging by this important role, it is not out of place for the
court to take a leading role in ensuring the responsible deployment
of technology, in the area of our expertise with the aim of
facilitating the success of the court’s mandate which is
determining disputes as quickly and as inexpensively possible,” he
said.

He declared that it was against that backdrop that the FCT
judiciary had commenced the digitalisation of its courts, adding
that with the complete audio/speech to text transcription solution,
judges would no longer take proceedings in longhand.

“Permit me to acknowledge that speech-to-text is not only a
growing technology worldwide. It is packed with massive potentials
to fundamentally change the way things are dining in our courtrooms
today.

“In simple terms, this is a technology that records the audio
content of court proceedings and then converts these audio contents
into typed words,” he informed.

According to the CJ, what was stalled additionally had the
ability to make the content available for playback at any time and
from anywhere.

He added that: “A judge can watch, replay court proceedings at
any time, fast forward, pause and even assess the demeanour of
witnesses from his comfort zone.”

The system, Justice Bello informed, was supported by a 2
Terabyte server and additional cloud storage.

He declared that the system would not only save the time and
energy consumed by judges while writing and taking notes in
longhand during trials but also speed up proceedings by the freed
time being put into more valuable uses.

“It will be impossible to miss words and important details as it
is sometimes the case while taking notes by hand,” he said.

The CJ, however, noted that there are challenges with the
system, including the issue of different accents, speech patterns
and cadence and homophones.

Justice Bello then disclosed that the installation of the
speech-to-text system was the first step to complete digitisation
of the FCT High Court, informing that the next step would be the
online filing of cases and visual hearing platforms.

Explaining the application, the project consultant, Ms Joycelyn
Adah, said that the call for innovation to accelerate the delivery
in the justice system cannot be over-emphasised.

She informed that the system would record and convert speeches
to the text as well as store the original record with up to 70 per
cent accuracy.

“This Application will be able to accurately record and convert
speech made in the courtroom to text, it will also automatically
generate a text document once speech commences.

“It will store the original record and transcribe the speech
into equivalent text with up to 70 per cent accuracy. It also has a
video component that comes in handy in this era of migration to
virtual Courtrooms,” the consultant stated.