Life can sometimes throw you curveballs: An unfair job loss, car accident or sudden eviction.

When these and other distressing situations happen, you may wonder: Is there anything the law can do to help me get justice?

It used to be that addressing these questions meant hiring a lawyer or facing a daunting do-it-yourself process.

First, you’d need to recognise what’s at stake before you can even file your claim. Do you have a legal interest to protect? Where do you go for that protection? Are you on the right path? What would you get if you are successful?

Even if you set off on the right path, representing yourself in court traditionally meant taking time out from work to draft documents, understand the legal processes, prepare for trial, and meet deadlines.

“All of this is a lot – a lot to understand, to manage, and to get through,” said Presiding Judge of the State Courts of Singapore, Justice Vincent Hoong.

He was speaking on Jan 24 at a Singapore Courts (SG Courts) event titled “Conversations with the Community”, an engagement series that brings together academia, legal and other sectors to forge multi-sector collaboration.

Justice Hoong observed that people involved in “community law” disputes – typically matters such as rental agreements, employment issues and family wills – are less likely to hire lawyers.

They may think the case is simple, and that the value of the dispute will be disproportionate to the claim. Increasingly, more also want to be self-reliant and believe they can get through the process with help from online resources.

How do the courts help enhance access to justice for the community? Watch the highlights of the third session of Conversations with the Community in this video below to find out more.

“Our (justice) system must not only be able to cope with this reality, but thrive in this new paradigm,” Justice Hoong said in his opening address. “It is not reasonable to expect the community to undergo a crash course on how to run a civil dispute, while managing their lives.

“A more effective way is to ensure that there are alternative, simpler processes for the community to get access to quality civil justice.”

Breaking down barriers

To do that, the courts aim to make community justice more accessible by reducing barriers to “knowing” and “doing” (see below).

One solution is automated document assembly systems, which help users create court documents after they answer a series of questions. 

“The self-represented person can access the system with less stress,” said National University of Singapore Associate Professor of Law Helena Whalen-Bridge, at a panel discussion during the event. She notes that these systems are used in the US and Singapore.

“The lawyers on the opposing side are also seeing more focused, relevant documents,” she said.

Lawyers who use these systems free up time to pursue higher-value work for their clients. As a result, the community can benefit from lower legal costs, added Ms Vivienne Lim, founding director of Genesis Law Corporation and a board member of Pro Bono SG.

Technology will also be critical in bridging the information and skills gaps to provide access to justice for all, particularly as Singapore faces a shortage of lawyers.

“Technology is non-negotiable, because that’s the only way we can scale,” said Mr Lim How Khang, Assistant Professor of Law and Computer Science at Singapore Management University.

But technologies that scale well – think Google’s search engine – require much effort to be designed, he added. “We really need to try a lot harder to figure out where technology can come in, because a lot has been done but we’re still very far behind what is possible.”

Looking ahead

“All told,” Justice Hoong said, “the courts have in place a foundationally sound and trusted system that can deliver quality civil justice to the community.” But the system does not remain static.

One example of this shift is increased emphasis on mediation in community law cases.

“Very often, the first port of call is really mediation,” said Justice Hoong. Coming to court “does not necessarily mean that there should be a ‘winner takes all’ outcome. We work very hard to find solutions that address the parties’ underlying interests, and not their strict legal rights”.

He added: “And that to me, is what access to justice is about: Both parties leaving the courthouse, feeling that their interests have been addressed.”

SG Courts has also set up an Access to Justice Programme Office to look into more ways to enhance people’s access to justice.

Some of the latest solutions SG Courts is exploring include a partnership with Harvey, a US-based artificial intelligence legal start-up, to create a pilot programme that helps self-represented people prepare for small claims cases.

“(The courts) will continue to identify improvements,” Justice Hoong said. “Such consistent and thoughtful iterations are the means by which we build on our strong foundations and improve the system’s trustworthiness even further.”

Register your interest for upcoming sessions of “Conversations with the Community” by emailing conversations@judiciary.gov.sg. Visit www.judiciary.gov.sg for more details.

In partnership with SG Courts