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CJI Kant Says AI Can Aid Courts, Never Replace Judges
Chief Justice Surya Kant said computers and AI can help courts, but they cannot take the place of judges.
Judges must still make the final decisions.
Technology can help people file cases, attend hearings online and find court information.
It can also translate judgments into Indian languages.
The Supreme Court has used video hearings and other digital tools to make justice easier to reach.
A chatbot can help people check case status, court lists, orders and judgments.
Another plan aims to keep important case information together as a case moves through the courts.
However, not everyone has equal access to technology, and court data must be protected.
Kant said courts need strong safeguards so technology supports justice without reducing public trust.
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said AI may support judicial research and court processes but cannot replace judges’ legal judgment or decision-making.
Speaking in Samarkand, he said digitisation must expand access to justice while protecting constitutional guarantees and public trust.
India’s court-technology initiatives include electronic filing, virtual hearings, live-streaming, SUVAS, Su-Sahayak and One Case, One Data.
The Supreme Court held more than 750,000 video-conference hearings between March 2020 and June 2024, according to Kant.
Kant identified the digital divide, data security and algorithmic accountability as continuing challenges for courts using technology.
- Who
- Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and the Supreme Court of India.
- What
- Kant said artificial intelligence may support judicial research and court processes but cannot replace judges’ legal acumen or decision-making.
- Where
- Samarkand, Uzbekistan, at the 7th Congress of the Association of Asian Constitutional Courts and Equivalent Institutions, and at another event on digitising the Supreme Court of India.
- When
- During Kant’s official visit to Uzbekistan; the report is dated October 1. The article also refers to court technology data from March 2020 to June 2024 and draft AI regulations released in June 2026.
- Why
- To explain how technology can improve access to justice while preserving constitutional guarantees, human decision-making, data security and public trust.
Technology With Human Oversight
Technology-Driven Court Access
Role of artificial intelligence
Technology With Human Oversight
AI should assist judicial research and court processes, while judges retain all legal judgment and decision-making authority.
Technology-Driven Court Access
AI-enabled tools can improve access to information, translation and court services, although the article does not argue that AI should replace judges.
Digitisation priorities
Technology With Human Oversight
Digitisation must remain tied to liberty, equality, access to justice, data security and public trust, with safeguards for vulnerable citizens.
Technology-Driven Court Access
Reengineering court processes around citizens can reduce geographical and financial barriers through electronic filing, virtual hearings and digital case management.
Key facts
- Speaker
- Chief Justice of India Surya Kant
- Core principle
- AI may supplement judicial research and court processes but cannot replace judges’ decision-making.
- Video hearings
- The Supreme Court held more than 750,000 video-conference hearings between March 2020 and June 2024.
- SUVAS
- The AI-assisted translation tool had published more than 83,000 translations in 18 languages by the previous year, according to Kant.
- Su-Sahayak
- An AI-powered Supreme Court chatbot providing information on case status, cause lists, orders, judgments and e-services.
- One Case, One Data
- An initiative intended to integrate case information across different levels of the judiciary.
- Continuing risks
- Kant cited the digital divide, data security and algorithmic accountability as challenges.
Quotes
Surya Kant
Chief Justice of India
“Grounded in the principle of human primacy, they make clear that artificial intelligence may supplement judicial research and support the court’s processes, but can never replace judicial acumen or decision-making, which must always remain with the judge”
theprint.in
“For India, therefore, the question has never been whether Courts should embrace technology, but how it may be harnessed while remaining faithful to constitutional duties”
theprint.in
Sources
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