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Project: Sound recording of main hearings and hearings in legal proceedings - the biggest technological modernisation of the working of courts after the introduction of computers

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Sound recording of main hearings and hearings in legal proceedings is one of the key steps to increase the efficiency of the judicial system, which is the main objective of the e-justice project.

Within the project "Sound recording of main hearings and hearings in legal proceedings" the Ministry of Justice equipped 352 courtrooms in all the courts in the Republic of Slovenia (regional, local, higher, special and supreme courts) with sound recording devices. Thus all courtrooms are equipped and since 1st October 2010 all main hearings and hearings have been recorded.

Recording of hearings is used in all legal proceedings where there are many parties: e.g. in civil and penal proceedings, nonlitigious civil proceedings, family matters and in other proceedings where sound recording can significantly save time since all the statements will be recorded precisely and recapitulation of statements will no longer be necessary for the minutes. In future minutes and rewriting of recordings will gradually be abolished, which will additionally increase the efficiency of court operations.

In a spirit of faster and efficient procedures sound recording disburdened the judge mainly in the part where he or she needs to focus on the recapitulation of the statements by witnesses and others and dictation for the record written by the recording clerk at the hearing. The control and the overview of the judge improved since the judge can focus more on substantive and procedural issues. With the introduction of the sound recording more quality decisions are expected since the judge concentrates on the statements and not their recapitulation. Now witnesses, lawyers and prosecutors can present their position without anybody interrupting their flow of thoughts. When formulating the judgement sound record can be of great help to study the statements in detail.

The project included practical training courses specific for various groups of the system users in courts (judges and their assistants, recording clerks and IT specialists). The beneficiary will constantly monitor the project effects and based on the feedback users will be encouraged to adapt to the new way of work as quickly as possible. At the same time, training courses will continue to be provided for improving institutional and administrative capacity of the courts.

Matevž Gros, district court judge - Councillor, District Court in Koper:
"A couple of months have passed since the judges of Criminal Department had recording devices installed in all our courtrooms we have been using. All the judges in our department have been using these devices for recording hearings or part of hearings. Since sound recording is not compulsory judges determine what hearings or parts of hearings will be recorded.
The recording devices are reliable, which is of key importance for us to decide to rely on sound recording of hearings. We have not identified any legal problems with the recording and transcription and the same has been established by our colleagues at the Higher Court in Koper.
And the parties or participants in hearings have also accepted the recording. The majority of them give it no second thought. Judges have also found that the hearings that are recorded run more smoothly and with less complications than those not recorded. As the project also included promotional activities, people and the public respectively are well acquainted with this novelty and accept it well."

Jernej Kovše, president of the District Court in Nova Gorica:
As a criminal judge I started to record the main hearings as soon as the courtrooms have been technically equipped. I have recorded so many hearings that I can present my opinion on my experience gained so far that are very positive. Firstly, it saves time, which depends on the case but I estimate that on the average the duration has shortened. Only after such experience one can see what disburdening of a judge conducting the proceedings mean because he can really focus on the subject and the possibility of different (psychological) observance of individual parties to the proceedings is not at all negligible that is so relevant later when you carefully examine and evaluate testimonial evidence.
All in all, my so far experiences have proven positive and undoubtedly imply a step towards good practice in shortening court proceedings. However, this project is a huge technological shift and we are all still adapting and let me underline that users should not be too hairsplitting because we shouldn’t afford it (Aucupia verborum sunt iudicis insigna.)."