ECOWAS Court of Justice to launch electronic case management system

Currently cases are filed before the court through written applications addressed to the Registry in Abuja, Nigeria

Is allowance instantly strangers applauded

Justice Edward Amoako Asante, President of the ECOWAS Court of Justice, has said the court will soon launch an electronic case management system, in efforts to deepen access to the court.

He made this known in an address at the opening ceremony of the court’s external session in Abidjan.

Currently cases are filed before the court through written applications addressed to the Registry in Abuja, Nigeria.

He said the soon to be implemented move, will enable parties and their lawyers file cases from anywhere in the sub-region.

“As part of that process, we will conduct training for lawyers in the sub-region on the new Ecowas Court electronic case management system in due course. We therefore continue to appeal to all lawyers and member states for their support and collaboration in this regard,” he said.

In the course of the two-week external court session, the court will hear 28 cases and deliver 11 judgements, mostly on alleged human rights violations.

Justice Asante also called on member states for their cooperation in the implementation of the court’s decisions.

He said the Court’s credibility would be affected if Member States fail to execute its decisions.

“It is crystal clear that in order to fully play the role of the watchdog of the community legal order, and to maintain the image of a viral, and independent regional court, the court must have the cooperation of Member States,” he added.

The opening session was livestreamed, the first, since the Court began such sessions in 2007 in Bamako, Mali.

The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice is a regional court, established in 1991 by the ECOWAS Revised Treaty, which provides that all Member States of the ECOWAS Community are ipso facto parties to the Court’s Statute. The composition and functioning of the Court are organized by this Statute, the Protocol and by the Rules of Procedure.