Colombian Judge Pioneers Court Innovation Using Copilot Technology

AI Revolutionizes Colombia’s Judicial System: A Leap Towards Efficiency and Accessibility

In a remarkable shift towards modernizing its judicial system, Colombia has embraced the advantages of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the efficiency and transparency of its legal processes. Leading this transformation is Judge María Victoria Quiñones, whose adoption of AI tools has significantly increased her productivity. She proudly shares that she now issues up to 20 rulings per week, a substantial increase from the mere four rulings she could manage before incorporating AI into her workflow.

Judge Quiñones relies heavily on an AI assistant named Copilot for various judicial tasks. This AI tool has been instrumental in transcribing court proceedings, summarizing hearings, and drafting judicial documents. Beyond these capabilities, Copilot also assists in refining grammar and language usage, comparing different draft rulings, and managing internal court data. As Quiñones puts it, "For us, this is magic… These tools have come to facilitate and improve judicial work."

A Comprehensive AI Strategy

Colombia’s judiciary is at the forefront of AI adoption in Latin America. In a landmark decision in 2024, the country’s constitutional court ruled that judges could utilize AI tools to expedite legal processes, albeit under specific guidelines. Following this, the judicial governing body issued regulations in December requiring judges to verify and disclose any information generated by AI. Notably, these regulations also prohibit the use of free AI chatbots and the application of AI in tasks such as evidence assessment, fact scrutiny, value judgments, or drafting final rulings.

The shift towards digitalization has also been marked by the increasing prevalence of virtual hearings in Colombia. Initially a necessity due to the pandemic in 2020, virtual hearings have now become a fundamental part of the judicial process. In 2024, virtual hearings surged to 1.1 million, accounting for roughly 80% of all hearings, with Microsoft Teams becoming the exclusive platform for these proceedings.

Johanna Pimiento, a leading figure in Colombia’s judicial digital transformation, highlights the primary motivation for integrating AI: the high backlog rates plaguing the judicial system. She explains, "Judges are constantly overwhelmed … and they need to be able to provide more timely responses. That’s why we are keen to start using AI tools." As of 2023, over 2.5 million cases were pending resolution, representing half of all cases. The average caseload for a Colombian judge exceeded 800 cases, with administrative rulings taking an average of 10 years to resolve.

Enhancing Judicial Efficiency

The introduction of AI has significantly boosted the volume of hearings in Colombia, doubling the total number over the past 14 years to nearly 1.4 million in 2024. This technological advancement is expected to further enhance judges’ productivity and efficiency. Despite some resistance to digitalization, the majority of judges have embraced the shift, recognizing the benefits of AI in making their work more manageable. However, challenges such as proper training, data privacy, and potential data breaches remain prominent concerns.

Colombia’s judiciary has chosen to partner with Microsoft, owing to the company’s robust privacy policies and commitment to data security. Copilot operates on Microsoft Azure, ensuring users retain ownership of their data, which is neither shared with third parties nor used for marketing purposes. This partnership underscores the importance of data privacy in the judiciary’s digital transformation journey.

Broader Benefits and Challenges

The potential benefits of AI in the judicial system are vast. Judges and their teams can significantly increase their productivity, while ordinary citizens gain easier access to justice, saving time otherwise spent traveling to courtrooms. Virtual hearings also facilitate greater transparency and accountability, allowing all parties involved to participate more easily.

Roberto Serrato, a prominent Colombian lawyer, attests to the transformative impact of AI and virtual hearings, noting that they have effectively halved the duration of judicial processes. He highlights how technology has improved the efficiency of the judiciary, enhancing transparency and accountability among judges and public officials.

The possibilities of Copilot in the judicial realm appear boundless. Judge Quiñones shares an example of how she used Copilot to compare a draft ruling with all previous rulings on the same topic, receiving an answer in seconds—a task that would have taken her team a whole morning without AI assistance. Her use of over 10,000 digitalized legal cases accumulated over the years further demonstrates the potential of AI in streamlining judicial workflows.

Judge Quiñones has also developed custom Copilot prompts to optimize her work processes, using other Microsoft tools like Power Automate and SharePoint to manage content and enhance efficiency. She actively shares best practices with fellow judges participating in the beta program via a Teams chat.

A Personal Journey Towards Technological Integration

Born in Bogotá, Judge Quiñones’ journey towards integrating technology in the judiciary is deeply personal. Her experiences attending a military school and pursuing a career as a high-performance sprinter instilled in her the discipline and efficiency she now seeks to embed in the judicial system. Her time as a police officer and later as a lawyer exposed her to the challenges of the judicial system, sparking her interest in using technology to improve access to justice—a topic she explored in her thesis.

For Judge Quiñones, the ultimate goal of integrating technology is to provide better public service, particularly to those with fewer resources, and to enhance accountability. This concern resonates deeply with her, ever since she read "No One Writes to the Colonel," a novella by Nobel Prize winner Gabriel García Márquez, illustrating the slow pace of justice.

Proud of her role in integrating technology and AI in the judiciary, Judge Quiñones often jokes about her proficiency with technology. Unlike other parents who struggle with even the TV remote, she takes pride in teaching her two children how to use devices. "For me, it’s the opposite—I’m always the one showing them how things work," she says with a smile.

In conclusion, the integration of AI in Colombia’s judicial system represents a significant step forward in enhancing efficiency, transparency, and accessibility. As the judiciary continues to embrace digital transformation, the benefits of AI tools like Copilot are expected to further revolutionize the legal landscape in Colombia, ensuring a more efficient and accessible system for all. For more information on this transformative journey, you can explore the original sources from Colombia’s judicial governing body and constitutional court rulings.

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