Judge 3.0

Modernizing the IT systems of Poland's common courts — a concept for the Ministry of Justice

Ministry of JusticeFebruary 2024

Audit of the SĘDZIA-2 screens — UX barrier map

The main challenge was translating a highly complex, multi-stage court reality into clear, intuitive interfaces that also meet rigorous legal and security requirements. I had to reconcile different user profiles (judges, assistants, court reporters, referendaries) and their very different workflows, and plan a full digitization of case files while ensuring mobile access and AI support. The short discovery window forced fast iteration: from mapping the pain points of the existing system, through ideation workshops, to low-level mockups that had to convince decision-makers that modernization could genuinely shorten proceedings and relieve administrative staff.

Audit of the existing system

The project began with an in-depth analysis of the SĘDZIA-2 system and its companion tools: ReCourt Player (hearing recordings) and the Common Courts Rulings Portal. I identified the key friction points: an archaic interface with nothing in common with modern usability standards, no integration between tools, a complete lack of a mobile version, and risky procedures for managing physical files.

User research

I conducted in-depth interviews with court staff — judges' assistants, court reporters and referendaries — across several district and regional courts. Key finding: users lose up to 40% of their working time manually re-typing data between systems, and the lack of a mobile version means judges cannot work with case files outside the courthouse.

User journey map — the judge's assistant

Information architecture — the new system

Based on the data gathered, I designed a new information architecture for SĘDZIA 3.0. Key principles: a single central hub for all cases assigned to a person, smart notifications integrated with e-delivery, and a built-in AI module supporting minute-taking and case-law search.

New information architecture — SĘDZIA 3.0

Interface design — the judge's dashboard

At the heart of the new system is a personalized judge's dashboard that shows the hearing schedule, cases requiring action and e-delivery notifications on a single screen. The interface is responsive and available on tablets, allowing judges to work with case files outside the courtroom for the first time.

Judge's dashboard — calendar and current cases

Case management module

The new case-file module brings together all documents, hearing recordings (with automatic AI transcription), party motions and the schedule in one place. The system suggests the next procedural steps and automatically drafts documents based on earlier rulings in similar cases.

High-fidelity mockups — screen overview

The final visual mockups of SĘDZIA 3.0 cover a complete set of screens for all four user profiles. Below are the key views that emerged from the interviews as the most needed and the most painful in the previous system.

Case list view

The new case-list view replaces SĘDZIA-2's tabular listings with a dynamic, filterable overview featuring instant full-text search across files, parties and rulings. Each case has a visual status and priority indicator.

AI-assisted minute-taking

One of the system's key modules is AI-assisted hearing minutes. The system automatically transcribes participants' statements, identifies speakers and drafts the minutes. The court reporter only verifies the key points, cutting minute-taking time by an estimated 60–70%.

E-delivery & communication

Integration with the government e-delivery system lets users send and receive procedural documents directly from the system, with a full history and delivery confirmations. No more printing, physical stamping or tracking registered mail.

e-Delivery module integrated with the case files

Results & recommendations

The SĘDZIA 3.0 concept was presented to representatives of the Ministry of Justice as a ready starting point for a system-modernization tender. It showed that, with the right UX approach, case-handling time could be cut by 30–40% while maintaining full compliance with legal requirements and personal-data security standards.

UX/UI Design

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