Chief Justice Bhushan Ramakrishna Gavai (CJI Br Gavai) warned about giving priority to technology in the justice distribution system and said that this will end the trust of the people in the judiciary and in such a situation, the courts should not lose the vision of humanity.
CJI Gawai gave a main speech on the theme ‘Court, Commerce and Law rule’ in the British Institute of International and Computer Law in London on May 4 last. In his address, he underlined the role of the judiciary in balanced the concept of commerce and ‘law of law’ in the digital age and said that courts needed to actively involve the process with commercial practicality.
He quoted a statement by former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, saying, “Technology should make a means of justice for all.”
Justice Gawai said, “The moment we allow technology to sit on the driver seat in the legal system, we start ending the trust of the public in ourselves and at the same time the foundation of the rule of law starts to weaken.”
He said, ‘Still in this race of interaction with technology, we should not forget our humanity. The rule of law is not as an abstract concept but as a vibrant promise for the real people facing real problems.
Justice Gawai said, “Every matter coming before our courts represents the hope of someone for justice and someone’s belief that the system will work fairly and equally.”
He said that when people stand at the crossroads amidst tradition and innovation, the courts are both the patron of ancient knowledge and the architect of future justice as the guards of law rule. The Chief Justice urged the courts around the world to maintain the rule of law between commercial and technical scenarios developing from around the world.
He said, “The rule of law in the digital age requires not only our attention, but also our active and thoughtful participation directed by commercial practicality.”
Justice Gawai spoke on the future issue of emerging technologies and justice system and said that with that mechanical miracle, people have seen people moving towards today’s smart phones, smart computers and perhaps the smartest humans in history.
He said, ‘Today we are living in an era where computer algorithms are giving fast shape to our daily options, whether they are advertisements that we see or people who we hire. These days, it is easy to forget that human touch still matters a lot in the field of justice.