The province of Nova Scotia launched an eCourt pilot program in July to improve access to the courts for resolving family legal matters.
According to the province, the program provides “an online platform where legal counsel for both parties are able to engage in real time, and have online exchanges with a judge for dispute resolution.”
The program is the first online judicial dispute resolution service in the country, said the government, and will be used to solve simple family legal issues.
“This innovative and transformative project will provide quicker and more direct access to resolutions for those experiencing divorce, child custody or spousal or child support issues,” Mark Furey, attorney general and minister of justice, said in a Friday news release.
“By providing legal counsel with expedited and more efficient ways for advancing their cases, we are able to improve the family justice system and better support Nova Scotia families.”
The province said that eCourt offers an alternative to the traditional in-person court process, which for some can be confrontational.
The online platform had also been created to better support people who would need “to arrange for childcare, transportation, time off from work or other accommodations to attend court in person.”
Additional features of the program, according to the province, include electronic filing and exchange of motions, affidavits and other court documents, virtual conferencing and the creation of an electronic record of all online proceedings.