Den Haag Unveils Digital Justice Strategy for Efficient Court Access
The Hague, Tuesday, 26 August 2025.
Den Haag’s new digital strategy, announced on June 4, 2025, uses AI to improve court access and reduce the administrative burden, enhancing the Netherlands’ judiciary system effectiveness.
Understanding Den Haag’s Digital Justice Strategy
The digital justice strategy in Den Haag marks a pivotal shift towards the modernization of judicial processes. The strategy, initiated by De Rechtspraak, the Dutch judiciary authority, emphasizes the implementation of digital procedures by leveraging proven technologies, ensuring that the risk levels associated with the adoption of new systems remain minimal. This strategic move involves rigorous testing by both judiciary staff and legal professionals to ascertain the efficacy of the digital systems before deploying them across all courts [1].
How the Digital Strategy Works
The project, known as Digitale Toegang, focuses on integrating digital accessibility into legal proceedings, allowing legal representatives and applicants to engage in near-paperless procedures, particularly in administrative and civil law domains. Previously, digital steps under the Kwaliteit en Innovatie (KEI) program were implemented across various fields including Observance, Criminal Law, and Administrative Law [1]. This ongoing digital initiative allows for controlled testing in select jurisdictions before broader application, ensuring stability and reliability [1].
Benefits of a Digital Judicial Framework
The benefits of Den Haag’s digital justice strategy extend beyond mere administrative ease. By digitizing court proceedings, the strategy aims to increase transparency, improve accessibility for the public, and reduce delays caused by administrative backlogs. Furthermore, this innovation is expected to lessen the judicial system’s dependency on physical documents and reduce overall costs associated with paper-based procedures, while still safeguarding procedural quality and integrity [1][2].
Key Players and Their Roles
The digital justice initiative is led by De Rechtspraak, with support from ICT service provider IVO Rechtspraak, which plays an integral role in the digital court system’s development [1][2]. The ICT Academy, operated by the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, also works on upskilling government employees in digital competencies, an effort critical to implementing and sustaining these new digital procedures across the judiciary [3]. The synergy of these organizations ensures that the strategy is not only technologically robust but also well-supported by trained personnel [3].