Digital Justice : Online Resolution of Minor Civil Disputes and the Use of Digital Technology in Complex Litigation and Class Actions

This article focuses on two ends of the civil justice spectrum. At one end are high-volume, low-value disputes confined to specific facts and legal issues unique to the disputing parties. Many of these disputes do not presently enter the traditional civil justice system. At the other end are complex legal proceedings which encompass the claims of multiple litigants with similar causes of action against one or more 'common' defendants, such as class actions or mass tort proceedings. At both ends of the spectrum, there is a tension between the desire for individualised justice and the need to facilitate the resolution of claims in a manner which is efficient, economical, transparent and procedurally fair. We examine how digital technology is being deployed to resolve disputes at both ends of this spectrum. In the first part of the paper, we focus on the use of technology to resolve high-volume, low-value disputes which share a common objective: the resolution of high-volume claims at low-transaction cost. In particular, we examine the increasing adoption of processes and procedures from the world of commerce to resolve disputes in the public justice system. In the second part of the article we examine how new technologies can facilitate the conduct and resolution of large scale, complex class action litigation in the higher courts through client intake, claim management, discovery processes, trial procedures and the implementation of settlements. We conclude that online dispute resolution methods have the potential to achieve, and in many instances do in fact achieve, the economical and expeditious resolution of claims in a manner which is transparent and procedurally fair