Technology has become a part of human life. It has helped us  connect, improve our lives, access  better services, and improve every aspect of our daily lives. The question, however, is how much technology has affected our legal system. "Justice Delayed is Justice Denied": India's justice  system continues to suffer from a backlog of litigation and final case decisions, making it difficult for victims to seek timely justice. 30-year-old cases are still pending in court.

The small number of referees is often seen as the main reason for this deficit, but the poor use of technology is also a main reason. Implementing technology in the law is designed to avoid endless delays in administering justice. The digitization of services has become visible across all industries as part of e-governance, as the government has recognized the importance of e-services, but modern technological  innovations such as artificial intelligence and blockchain are still viewed with scepticism by many.

The use of AI and blockchain has steadily increased over the years, but is limited by the level of innovation in the industry. The use of artificial intelligence can simplify and improve the efficiency of various industries, while blockchain can be used to  store data securely, since data is considered a "new currency", which makes it valuable and worth protecting.

The government has conducted several studies on the use of these modern technologies and  further recognized the use of  artificial intelligence and blockchain technology for future development as part of the mission of e-governance to understand the degree of digitization of our legal system, the scope and benefits AI and blockchain in the  system and how this contributes to speedy justice.

Introduction 
Technology has permeated every aspect of our society, be it medicine, banking, finance or even education. India is the country that hosts the largest ed tech company in the world. However, the question arises as to whether and to what extent technology has found its way into the area of ​​law. Also, the proven advantage of technology is its ability to accelerate everything and seamlessly connect to everyone without borders. Can delays in the administration of justice be avoided with such a use of technology in law? As said: "Justice delayed is justice denied."

The right to justice is a fundamental right. A right recognized from the birth of Magna Carta to today's modern constitutions. This right to speedy justice was developed in English law and has its roots in the Magna Carta of 1215 ("We shall not sell, withhold or delay any law or right to any person").

In India, the establishment of the accelerated justice framework is a correlative reading of the art. 14, 19 and 21. It is for the State to ensure the protection of this fundamental right (in relation to the State Policy Directive referred to in Article 38, paragraph 1, 39 and 39-A) and therefore this fundamental right must measures on take legal action to ensure this.

Current Situation Of Speedy Justice In India

Although recognized and protected by the Constitution, the right to speedy justice is a long-term goal. As in the case of Fr. Ramachandra Rao v. State of Karnataka: "...The main reason for the underdevelopment of the judiciary in our country is the low percentage of judges in the population......The ratio of judges in India (based on the 1971 census) was only 10.5 judges per million population...

The Judiciary Commission suggested that India needs 107 judges per million Indian population of judges in India to India 21.03 judges per 10 lakh.As the number of court cases increases, the problem of the small number of judges is a concern. About 4 million lawsuits are pending, according to the National Judicial Data Grid4. According to the PRS5 Legislative Study, it increased by 2.8% annually in all jurisdictions from 2010-2020.

Since 2021 more than 4.5 million cases were pending in all Indian courts. Of these, 87.6% of the cases were pending in the lower courts and 12.3% in the higher courts. In the highest courts, 41% of cases lasted five years or more.For more than a decade, a total of nearly 45,000 lawsuits have been pending in secondary and higher courts. 21% of the cases in the higher courts and 8 in the lower courts have been pending for more than ten years.

In 2021, more than 9.2 lakh cases were pending in 956 expedited courts in 24 states/UT (the rest have no functioning expedited trials). Almost 4.8 lakhs as of December 31, 2019. 8,000,000 prisoners were held in Indian jails. Of these, more than two-thirds were court cases (3.3 lakh).

This delay in hearing and completing cases, coupled with a shaky percentage of the judicial population, is a serious problem and often leaves the common man without timely justice. According to a report ​​by the World Justice Project, an estimated 5 billion people worldwide have unmet needs for justice. Both the judiciary and the legislature have tried to streamline and speed up the process. Technology plays a key role in this.

From Paperless Courts To Limbs

Modern technology enables courts to improve efficiency and administration of justice. In countries like the US and UK, information technology is used extensively in court. Computer science is a hot topic in India. in recent years.The development of courts was seen as part of the e-governance project and initiatives such as e-courts were launched. Several initiatives have been taken. Specifically, these include:

E-Courts:
The Project Mode's integrated E-Court mission is one of the nationwide e-governance projects being implemented in Supreme Courts and District/Lower Courts across the country.The project was developed based on the "National Policy and Action Plan for the Implementation of Information and Communication Technology in the Indian Judicial System - 2005" developed by the Electronic Committee of the Supreme Court of India.

The government has computerized 14,249 districts & subordinate courts under the project by March 2014 with a total budget of Rs 935 crore. India's first e-court opened at the Hyderabad High Court of Justice in 2016.

NICNET
NICNET is a nationwide satellite computer network that is a type of Wide Area Network (WAN).8. All higher courts have been computerised and connected through the NICNET network.

Tele-Law Program:
Started in 2017, the Tele-Law Program was created by the Department of Justice as a model for the legal empowerment of poor and vulnerable people. Tele-Law is designed to provide pre-trial legal advice and counsel by connecting them to appointed attorneys via video conferencing/telephone facilities available in village-level Shared Service Centers (SCCs).

LIMBS:
LIMBS is an online application to track cases involving the Indian Central Government more efficiently and transparently10. It is an initiative of the Department of Legal Affairs (DoLA), Department of Law and Justice, and aims to digitise the court process and track the entire lifecycle of a case.

The Future Of Technology: Artificial Intelligence (Ai) And Blockchain

Artificial intelligence (AI)
Artificial intelligence or artificial intelligence was defined by John McCarthy as "the science and engineering of creating intelligent machines, particularly intelligent computer programs. Using computers to understand human intelligence involves a similar task, but artificial intelligence does not have to limit this to biologically observable methods. Simply put, the goal of AI is to develop systems or programs that can operate with individual independence and intelligence.AI has improved in all major areas of society, to name but a few include banking (to provide customer service, detect anomalies and credit card fraud), agriculture (to find ways to grow efficiently and protect crops from weeds), healthcare, manufacturing, and cybersecurity.

Potential of AI in justice systems
AI has already been recognized as the most important tool for the future of justice. The United States Bar Council has recognized the use of digital data in conducting high-speed litigation as follows:
"Standard 12-4.4 Obtaining and Using Information to Advance Cases - Jurisdictions should strive to use modern technology information systems to inform courts and all to assist other organisations involved in the course of criminal proceedings to quickly collect, store, disseminate and retrieve information about the case, and should organize the flow of information to enable prosecutors and defense to obtain reliable information , and to enable the court to have reliable information to make decisions" 12.In India, the SUPACE implementation shows growth Usability tool AI.SUPACE or Supreme Judicial Efficiency Assistance Portal13 was developed to to process huge case data and s ie for the provision to sort the judge.

Whatever technology we introduce into the justice system, the overarching goal is to make the justice system more accountable, accessible and efficient for ordinary citizens, as Gregor Strojin, Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Artificial Intelligence (CAHAI) of explains the Council of Europe: "If we want to work on increasing efficiency, we must also keep in mind the important aspect of justice in the eyes of the citizens: it is based on trust in the functioning of the system.

2017 The Department of Trade and Industry established an AI task force in to "advance the use of AI in India's economic transformation". support the goal of becoming one of the leaders in AI-rich economies. "Court System and Professions Law firms rely heavily on analytics and decision making. AI-powered software and actions can intervene with lP's legal department to process cases more efficiently and quickly.

1. Legal Analytics:
   Artificial intelligence can be used to implement forensic analysis. Legal analysis is the science of drawing conclusions from large amounts of data15. Forensic analysis will help lawyers and judges make data-backed decisions. Forensic analysis can provide lawyers with powerful insights because it relies on big data. Using a variety of AI-powered analytics tools, attorneys can get the data they want that would otherwise require hours of manual research.
    
2. Contract Review and Contract Analytics:
   It takes a long time to manually check and secure those aspects of the contract that are still prone to human error. Using AI to automate the contract review process can mitigate the error problem and save time. Various startups such as Lawcheck, Klarity and Clearlaw are developing AI software that can detect errors and acceptable portions of a transaction. In addition, contract renewals and the protection of contractual rights and obligations are often a problem, especially in large companies with multiple contracts. Artificial intelligence-based contract analysis can help organizations stay informed. be able to track renewal and expiration periods.
    
3. Legal Research and Legal prediction:
   Legal research has been transformed by the intervention of software. In the past, legal research had to be done by hand, trawling through tons of case law and peer-reviewed journals. With the advent of software, this has been digitized. But this software like Manupatra and LexisNexis does not yet have the necessary intelligence to provide exactly the data that the researcher needs. By developing AI-powered search systems that analyze vast amounts of data, researchers have better and faster access to the data they want.Furthermore, using predictive analytics techniques, it is possible to determine the outcome of court cases based on the analysis of previous cases and similar facts to previously closed cases.
    
4. Legal Guidance:
   AI-powered chatbots can help provide legal advice to citizens. These applications can be used to create questions and answers that serve as a legal tool to resolve user requests related to the law. AI can be used in ways that make the common man more legal. This can bring them closer to the judiciary and its ability to administer justice and protect people's rights.
    

Blockchain
Blockchain is a secure method of data storage. Data is securely stored in blocks that gradually form a chain. A hash is created for all data stored in the block. Hashing is a process algorithm that converts a large amount of data into a fixed size. For example, the word "mouse" can be cryptographically converted to "1f43156th1" using a hash function.This conversion makes your data irreversible and gives you more security for your archived data.

This security and transparency feature that blockchain offers has made it a core technology in many industries.Blockchain technology has been in the spotlight since the inception of Bitcoin, creating value for money. Gradually, blockchain has spread to other industries, notably banking and finance , the insurance sector of the capital markets for insurance, supply chain management, health and medical records management.Potential of blockchain in the judiciary.

Countries such as China, the United Kingdom and Sweden have already adopted blockchain in their judicial systems. A notable entity in the blockchain space is the Global Legal Blockchain Consortium, which includes various law firms, corporations, and universities.

The consortium aims to "ensure the integrity and authenticity of data in contracts, documents and similar data, the confidentiality and security of data in contracts, documents and communications, the interoperability between legal services and law firm services, the improvement of efficiency and Cost savings in operations for legal departments and law firms that use blockchain to enhance and extend existing legal technology investments by adding significant functionality to legacy systems to extend their lifespan."17

In India, the concept of implementing the use of blockchain in the legal sector was proposed by NITI Aayog in his report titled "Blockchain:
The India Strategy Part I"18 in which he presents the actual need to use this technology without yield in the existing legal system useful to use. The central government recognized the importance of blockchain to the mission of e-governance, believing that "blockchain has applications in health, governance, cybersecurity, automotive, media, travel, logistics and hospitality, education, law, energy and smart cities and so on". 19.

The blockchain can have many applications in the legal field, such as B. smart contracts, land registers, intellectual property rights, litigation and commercial agreements and transactions.

1. Smart Contracts:
   Currently, contracts are written manually, which is prone to human error. Blockchain can change this by creating a contract that can be executed automatically based on certain pre-coded requirements i.e. a smart contract. Smart contracts are programs that can be programmed in such a way that the execution of each action depends on the compliance with predetermined parameters.
   
   These parameters are coded in the software and are executed step by step as follows. For example, intelligent programs can be coded step by step, such as: - First: user or attorney signature to the software with valid credentials, Second, parties create attorney-approved digital software.
   
   Third, all required parties can sign the agreement. Fourth, the agreement is transferred to the blockchain, where it is approved and rejected if any of the codified steps are not followed by the parties when drafting the contract. One of the problems with implementing smart contracts is the availability of developers who can create such software that can identify legal contracts. Experienced lawyers must work closely with the developers in such a scenario.
    
2. Evidence in electronic form:
   During the trial phase, if authorized by law or court order, the blockchain can be used by the judiciary to authenticate and certify electronic evidence. The evidence collector can collect evidence and upload it to blockchain servers. Using blockchain, electronically stored evidence can not only be verified as genuine, but also allow judges to easily eliminate false evidence.
    
3. Protection of IP rights:
   Blockchain technology can be used to enter into licensing agreements related to intellectual property. The annual and lengthy registration of a new IP address, which is just as important as the transfer of existing property rights, can be eliminated via the blockchain. Blockchain technology in the IP space can also help identify and distinguish the original product from a duplicate. Blockchain-based ledgers storing IP rights data will enable better authentication and enforcement of participants' intellectual property rights.
    
4. Criminal Cases:
   The criminal justice system would benefit from blockchain technology. The records created by the blockchain could be used by various stakeholders, from law enforcement officers to surveillance officers. Changes in the legal status of the accused could be documented immediately. Various parties such as victims could be kept informed of the status of the accused. Cases could be registered in the blockchain system.This will give the public better access to information. Interested parties can receive updates spontaneously. This leads to transparency in the system, which makes it easier to have an overview of all data.

Conclusion
Finally, transparent, secure, and time-stamped blockchain records can be useful in court cases. Technology is constantly evolving, and skepticism may arise from many quarters regarding issues such as knowledge gaps related to coding and cryptography, which need to be considered by the judiciary and government before investing seriously in AI and blockchain technology.

It is an important factor reflecting the prosperous future of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology in India. With the technology infrastructure supported by artificial intelligence and the emerging blockchain, there is clear room for development in all areas.

Written By: Krishna Kumar