SC calls for trial courts’ automation anew

MANILA, Philippines - Supreme Court Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno yesterday called anew for the automation of trial courts nationwide following a fire that razed the Cagayan de Oro hall of justice to the ground.

Sereno said last Friday’s blaze, which left a court worker and a security guard dead, was a proof of the need for the digitization of court records.

“This is a deeper step in automation, than our present plans and funds allow. It also makes it imperative that a more secure and scientific system of preserving evidence be devised,” she said.

Sereno said the high court is planning to ask Congress to fund the automation project, citing the Cagayan de Oro fire and the destruction of the Tacloban City hall of justice during Super Typhoon Yolanda.

“Many pieces of evidence were lost, which makes urgent the need to fully automate the court systems nationwide,” she said.

The digitization of court records is among the projects proposed by the SC to enhance the delivery of justice and address delays in the resolution of cases.

Earlier, the high court put up electronic courts or e-courts, which hastened not only the resolution of cases but also in making the courts less prone to corruption.

Sereno ordered court administrator Jose Midas Marquez to go to Cagayan de Oro to meet with the judges and court employees and inspect the site where the courts would temporarily hold office and hearings.