Empirical Study On Barriers To E-Filing Adoption Among Lawyers And Litigants In Tamil Nadu Lower Courts
- IJLLR Journal
- 1 day ago
- 1 min read
Medha K N, LLM, Department of crime and forensic law, The Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar Law University, Chennai
ABSTRACT
Judicial digitization promises streamlined operations, greater openness, and equitable access to adjudication. Within India's e-Courts Mission Mode Project, electronic filing stands as a pivotal innovation, rolled out incrementally across judicial tiers. E-filing, as a core component of the e- Courts Mission Mode Project in India, has been progressively implemented across court hierarchies. yet, its adoption within lower courts has been uneven, particularly affecting litigants and legal practitioners operating at the grassroots level. This study undertakes an empirical analysis of the barriers influencing e-filing adoption in Tamil Nadu lower courts. Primary data were collected through a structured questionnaire administered to advocates and litigants across multiple districts. The findings show that infrastructural limitations, system instability, socio-economic constraints, and inadequate institutional support significantly impede effective utilisation of e-filing systems. Even amid widespread digital familiarity among respondents, persistent technical failures and procedural redundancies diminish user confidence and reinforce reliance on conventional filing methods. The study concludes that without addressing these systemic impediments, compulsory digitisation risks exacerbating procedural inequality rather than advancing access to justice. The paper contributes empirically to ongoing debates on judicial digitalisation by foregrounding ground-level user experiences within the subordinate judiciary.
Keywords: e-filing, judicial digitalisation, subordinate courts, digital divide, adaptation barriers
