The Supreme Court is pursuing reforms aimed at addressing persistent problems in the justice system, including delays in case resolution, limited access to legal services and concerns over accountability.
Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo discussed the reforms during a recent meeting with the Justice Reform Initiative (JRI), led by its Chairperson Alexander Cabrera.
Gesmundo said the JRI’s advocacy for the rule of law, accountability and integrity is consistent with the Supreme Court’s reform agenda under the Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022–2027 (SPJI).
“Under the SPJI, the SC has pursued efficiency through its High-Performance Courts initiative, which uses a Performance Development Framework to identify causes of delay, measure court performance, and reduce backlogs in trial courts,” Gesmundo said in a news release Monday.
He also cited the Judiciary Fiscal Autonomy Act, which he said strengthens judicial independence and service delivery by ensuring that the Judiciary’s budget cannot be reduced below the previous year’s allocation and that funds are released automatically and regularly.
Gesmundo said the JRI has identified long-standing challenges in the justice system, including delays in resolving cases, limited access to justice, and public concerns about corruption and competence in the courts.
The JRI, established in 2012, is a coalition of private-sector and civil-society organizations that advocates reforms in the administration of justice and conducts surveys and research on public and business-sector perceptions of the justice system.
Digital reforms
The Supreme Court has also introduced digital systems to improve court services.
These include eCourt PH, a unified case management system that allows digital filing and real-time case tracking across court levels, and the Judiciary ePayment Solution, which allows litigants and lawyers to pay legal fees and court dues online.
The court is also pursuing the use of artificial intelligence for legal research and routine court operations.
For those unable to afford legal representation, the SC has implemented the Unified Legal Aid Service, which requires covered lawyers to provide at least 60 hours of legal aid services every three years.
“These services may include representation before courts or quasi-judicial bodies, legal counseling, drafting of legal documents, developmental legal assistance, participation in legal outreach programs, and notarization of documents,” the SC said.
