ECM Briefs

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has been implementing an integrated document and knowledge management system for almost a decade now and it has become an indispensable tool for the accomplishment of the Court’s mission. The IT system not only streamlines the business processes of the Court to enable it to deal with the ever increasing number of applications, but it also provides a public service via its Internet sites to the citizens of the greater Europe and indeed the world. Since its roll-out, the system has acquired an international reputation as ground-breaking technology and best practice in the relevant domain.

Recently, we spoke with John Hunter, Head of the IT Division at the ECHR, to learn more about its implementation and strategies for increasing end-user acceptance and support.

Can you tell us about the ECHR and how you were able to solve your key IT challenges?

John Hunter (JH): The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) deals with allegations of human rights violations against the Council of Europe's 46 member states. The Court is legally obligated to publish its judgments and actions on every case and make all information available to the public. With the number of applications to the Court increasing significantly each year, from 14,000 applications in 1997 to 50,000 applications in 2006, the Court needed to streamline internal processes and improve accessibility and dissemination of its case-law and related human right documents to the outside world.

In 1998, the Court rolled out the Human Rights Documents project (HUDOC), deploying Open Text Livelink ECM, comprising eDOCS DM and KM, as part of the overall Court Management Information System. This project enabled the Court to process cases faster by creating a Web-based document and knowledge management system which supports over 700 internal users and millions of external users worldwide for easy and efficient access to human rights documents. This system is a mission critical project to help ensure the proper administration of justice in Europe and to provide access to the Court's jurisprudence for national courts, practitioners, academics and the general public.

Numerous articles have been written about the system and a Gartner Group report indicates that the HUDOC case-law data-base represents, in terms of what would be necessary to provide the same service, savings of some 7.9 million Euros a year. The Court regularly receives visitors from other international organizations and from government bodies from COE member States to see the system.

How has the project changed how tasks are performed at the Court? What are the benefits?

JH: The creation of an integrated IT system involved a complete transformation of the Courts processes for handling incoming and outgoing information. It also created new possibilities for how to better service the growing number of citizens within the 46 member states and ensured that the Court could handle the rapidly growing application and case load. Each phase of the project involved tremendous change, but the success and benefits have been significant. The benefits realized from the solution include a rapid return on investment costs, substantial ROI, streamlined internal business procedures, ease of use, and a Web-interface that allows remote access and a flexible work environment.

The integrated system not only saved the Court millions of dollars through improved efficiencies, but it de-institutionalized access to the Court’s information and positioned them effectively to handle rapid growth. By implementing a cutting edge IT solution and committing to continual innovation of the solution, the European Court of Human Rights has become a trailblazer in knowledge and document management for other international organizations and government bodies.

Often the most innovative projects encounter the greatest resistance. What are some of the biggest obstacles that other IT professionals should consider?

JH: When you take on a project of this size, it is very important that you conduct extensive research, plan in advance and clearly define your business objectives. I would recommend that you start small but think big. It’s very important to get your end users and top level management involved as well as external developers that have experience in major developments. Also, don’t be afraid to "get your hands dirty" – it helps in team building.

It is critical that you conduct end user interviews to ensure needs are met, but be prepared – this can be a lengthy process. For example, for the document management system, the Court spent six months interviewing users to ensure that when the system went live the existing documents were migrated into the system and proper metadata rules for populating the document profile were established. User requirements gathering was the most important phase of system development.

I’d also add that it’s important that you make sure vendor selection is consistent with the procedures laid down by the procurement policies of the organization. Under the Financial Regulations of the Council of Europe, the Court has to follow a Tenders Board procedure for acquisition of services and vendor solutions which can slow down project timescales.

How do you see your project's innovation benefiting other applications, organizations, or global communities?

JH: The Court has set the standard for how other government bodies or other large organizations can efficiently manage large amounts of information. The ECHR project demonstrates that with thoughtful planning, top-level project support, and committed vendor partnership, a broad transformation of business processes is possible.

This project has allowed the Court to continue their mission of protecting human rights around the world. As a public organization, the ECHR is accountable to over 800 million citizens and this project has helped to streamline the Court’s functions to help it keep up with the increasing case load and open up access to information to the public. Over the last decade, the Court has experienced exponential growth and this IT project has made it possible for the Court to continue to function and be prepared for continued growth.