By Vivian Okejeme
The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, has formally launched Electronic Filing (E-Filing) System in the Lagos division of the court.
The initiative was described as a major step toward faster, more transparent and technology-driven justice delivery in Nigeria.
Speaking at the event, the CJ said the era of cumbersome paper filing and manual court processes must give way to a modern digital system.
Justice Tsoho said the new platform would eliminate many of the delays and vulnerabilities associated with the physical filing of cases and processes.
According to him, the launch of the e-filing system was not merely a technological improvement but a structural reform aimed at strengthening judicial efficiency, transparency and integrity.
“For too long, the corridors of the Federal High Court have been synonymous with the physical weight of paper, mountains of case files, and the gruelling manual labour of filing processes that belong to a bygone era. Today, we declare that era over.
“The launch of the Electronic Filing System in the Lagos Division is not merely a technical upgrade, it is a fundamental entrenchment of the efficiency, transparency and integrity of our judicial process. We are not just installing software, we are dismantling the barriers that have historically slowed the wheels of justice,” he said.
The chief judge said the judiciary could no longer resist technological advancement, noting that courts must align with global realities.
He said the former manual filing process had exposed the system to risks including missing files, damaged records and unnecessary human interference.
In an increasingly digital global economy, a judiciary that clings to manual antiquity becomes a liability to the state. Technology is the bedrock upon which the future of Nigerian jurisprudence will be built, and we are here today to fulfil that institutional obligation. To resist this shift is to resist the evolution of justice itself.
“The manual filing system was fraught with systemic vulnerabilities, such as physical files susceptible to misplacement, damage or unauthorised tampering. Requiring counsel to travel across the city or the country simply to stamp a document is an affront to modern productivity,” he said.
Tsoho also said the new digital platform would create accountability and remove unofficial bottlenecks.
