Design and Implementation of a Web-based Legal Practitioner Application System
CHAPTER ONE
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
The web-based legal practitioner application system has an increasingly important role in a modern state not only in dispensation of justice but also in the formulation of a just legal order and in the preservation of an efficient juristic order.
The characteristics of the on-line legal practitioner such as independence, integrity, official administration of courts and administration of justice.
There is a roll of legal practitioners kept as a roll of court and maintained by the chief Registrar of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. In general, a person is entitled to be enrolled if and only if:
- He has been called to the bar by the body of Benchers; and
- He produces a certificate of his call to the Bar to the Chief Registrar of Supreme Court.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
This is considering the fact that, the on-line legal practitioner information was really difficult to enco-operate. However, with the modern technology, it has being made to be easy and understandable for users and those concerned. Since computer and communication has made this world a global village, legal practitioner information system becomes very important not to practitioners alone but to every user that wants to get legal information.
However, we have gone far and beyond to enco-operate a lot of information for practitioners depending on the type of information needed, like the latest case in town, the appellant, the respondent, who the case judged, who is the magistrate, where the case was adjourned to and other information needed.
Possibilities of taking the law court procedures has being unidirectionally viewed by people. Michael R. Arkfeld, in his write-up “On-line Technology tools for litigation and the law officer why use them and what are they?” Is of the view that it is not what the practice of law entails, that it does not measure of a lawyer but often times measure how much paper he or she has shuffled. He tried to proffer a solution to the situation by stating that, “The only viable solution to these problems is to control your case information using the combination of papers and on-line (digital) information management technology. Digital controlling case information means converting papers and other analysis information into a digital format and using computers to store, access, retrieve, organize, print and send this information easily and instantaneously in effect creating on-line digital electronic trial note book.
Palmer Dick, in his own contributions says that on-line case management systems perform simple and repetitive tasks faster with greater accuracy at a lower cost than doing it manually. He continues that on-line case management system will maintain a schedule of trials, assign judges, attorneys and witnesses for the case and even date for which the trials are scheduled. It will aid in excellent on-line court management controls simplify storage and retrieval of the date essential for daily on-line court operation. He ended saying that likely impacts of automating on-line management could be summarised thus;
- The filling process will be made easier on-line.
- The advocate/litigants need not wait for a long time in the queue – will be eradicated by using the on-line method.
- The amount collected towards court fee in a day will automatically be calculated thus saving time of court official.
- Filming process will be orderly and globally viewed.
- The on-line system saves time and efforts of advocates and court officials.
There is no doubt that the on-line automation of the law court scheduling system will be beneficial to the legal profession, even in the area of cost, it will be drastically reduced considering that the use of tools such as pen, file folders, file cabinets, paper, legal pads and notebooks that are used to manage. Case materials will be reduced and even the use of some of them will be stopped.
CHAPTER THREE
DESCRIPTION AND ANALYSIS OF EXISTING SYSTEM
On-line legal practitioner’s information system is being incorporated for its flexibility. However, our case study is particularly on Appeal Court. In that we realise that in appeal court they do not handle fresh case; rather a case that has been judged that the appellant felt he or she is not satisfied with the case in the High Court. The Court of Appeal hear appeal both in civil and criminal cases from other higher courts, criminal cases are cases from the police to the court while the civil cases are cases between a client and the government.
In the Appeal Court of Enugu, there can be ten (10) cases to be heard in every sitting from Monday – Thursday from 9.00am in which two of the cases are appealed and eight are motions. In all, three weeks in the month are used for sitting while the remaining one week is used for conference week. Cases are only heard if the parties are present and if not it is postponed till some other time.
CHAPTER FOUR
DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION
The design of the new system was due to the fact that the committee agreed on the design of an online legal practitioner, due to the cumbersome method of evaluating the digital and manual system of court information.
The online legal practitioner system is designed to accept an expected input and output that will be worked upon. The purpose of this design is to produce specification that will enable a complete and accurate implementation of Network information from different system all over the country without going back to design for more information.
Online Legal information system has put to an end the under listed problems associated with manual system.
CHAPTER FIVE
DOCUMENTATION
This documentation is given a detailed report of all the information necessary to provide the user with the understanding of the purpose and how to use the designed program on system as to achieve its objectives.
This helps in carrying out further research and improvement on the system. And also information about the new system and its working procedure are outlined so that modification can be done in the system without studying the entire system. In view of this, the documentation of this project is done in two sections namely.
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSION
Having come to the end of this work, it has been necessary to access the writers overall view or the daily scheduling of a legal practitioner which is practiced in courts but also covers law teaching, law research, administration in different branches where law pays a role and in fact, commercial and industrial employments and all other activities which postulate and requires the use of legal knowledge and skill and which adopt legal process also fall within its scope.
Looking at the legal profession, the judges, lawyers, registrars, etc. They really pass through a lot of training and spend so many years in the training. They therefore do not need something that will really stress them like the struggle to handle large papers and other materials that are used in manual control of a case for litigation. If the section responsible for the processing of information and materials is adequately taken care of, there would not have been work load in the section.
RECOMMENDATION
The recommendation of this study springs up basically from the outlined benefits that are achievable through the use of online system. The author recommends that every organization should embark on online system, especially; information and services oriented organization, as it will help to reduce the obstacle impending the legal practitioner services.
In this case the government should implement recommendation of the committee by passing the Legal Education Act 1962 and the Legal Practitioners Act 1962. The Legal Education Act 1962 provided for Legal Education in Nigeria. The Act established a council known as the council of legal Education charged with responsibility for the legal education of persons seeking to become members of the profession. The council established in 1962 a law school then known as the Federal Law School and later known as the Nigeria Law School, a school, which offers a professional course lasting one academic year.
REFERENCES
- Library of Congress. Website.
- Nigeria Court of Appeal. www.court of Appeal. NG
- Registrar (Litigation), Court of Appeal, Enugu (June, 2003)
- Allison Sonntag. Chief Deputy Clerk Kitsap County Washington): Washington Saves Million by Automating its Court Scheduling.
- Michael, R. Arkfeld (esqa0: Technology tools for litigation and the law office; why use them and what are they.
- Barrister Nwonye B. U.
- Law, Justice and Nigerian Society. Essays in Honour of Hon. Justice Mohammed Bello – Edited by I. A. Ayua.
- The Nigerian Legal System.
