NY Courts task force recommends online upgrades as digital divide grows
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Queens Civil Court. File photo by David Brand
By David Brand
A state working group tasked with examining the future role of technology in the court system has released a series of recommendations to enhance online operations and mandate e-filing, even as a growing “digital divide” impedes justice for low-income litigants.
The Online Courts Working Group of the Commission to Reimagine the Future of New York’s Courts released its initial report Monday, four months after Chief Judge Janet DiFiore launched the initiative to consider the court’s digital future during the COVID pandemic and beyond.
The task force, led by attorneys Brad Karp, of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, and Mylan Denerstein, a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, has recommended creating a statewide online courts portal and upgrading the “disjointed and difficult” court system website, further examining the role of virtual proceedings, creating a small claims online dispute resolution pilot program in Manhattan and passing a state law that mandates electronic filing.
DiFiore said the recommendations will “not only enhance the efficiency of our operations, but also equip our courts to more effectively address the evolving justice needs of New Yorkers throughout the state, including our most vulnerable populations.”
The working group said they were guided by the principle of access to justice, which is further complicated by the use of digital tools that require internet capabilities and devices.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an even greater number of unrepresented litigants entering the court system,” the working group wrote in its report. “This has highlighted the ‘digital divide,’ as the justice system was forced to adopt an online, remote system, although many low-income or rural litigants lack access to the internet.”
The report provides few concrete measures for addressing the disparities, however.
As more functions move online, the court system should consider partnering with organizations like schools and libraries to provide internet access and training, while providing litigants opportunities to conduct court business in-person, the report states.
“Accessibility cannot meaningfully vary by group,” the working group wrote.
The growing digital divide mentioned throughout the report has motivated some court system stakeholders, like the New York City Bar Association, to advocate for universal WiFi access in homeless shelters.
“Allowing the lack of access to remain unaddressed is unacceptable, especially as our communities continue to deal with the pandemic and access becomes an urgent issue of public health,” they wrote in a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio in August.
