Context
The EU’s European Data Strategy emphasises leveraging data for innovation and growth. In line with this, Spain’s Ministry of Justice is prioritising data-driven decision-making within the justice system. This initiative, the ‘Data-Driven Justice’ project, is a collaborative effort between the Ministry, regional administrations and relevant judicial bodies. The project aligns with the Justice 2030 Plan and is overseen by the State Technical Committee for Electronic Judicial Administration (Comité Técnico Estatal de la Administración Judicial Electrónica – CTEAJE).
Objectives
The Data-Driven Justice project has two primary goals. First, it seeks to create an open access, inter-administrative data platform. This platform will integrate various data sources from justice administration systems and other relevant government agencies. By collecting and analysing disaggregated and georeferenced information, the project aims to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the justice system’s operations. Second, the project seeks to transition from a ‘document-oriented’ justice system to a ‘data-oriented’ one. This means leveraging data to improve decision-making, policy formulation and service delivery within the justice system.
Implementation
The Data-Driven Justice project faces the challenge of transforming a traditionally document-centric system into a data-driven one. To achieve this, the project is implementing three technological infrastructure projects. The first focuses on data collection and standardisation. A central data warehouse will facilitate collaboration between administrations and ensure data quality. Second, a system of dashboards and statistical tools will allow for data visualisation and analysis to inform evidence-based policy decisions. Finally, the project is developing advanced data exploitation tools, such as georeferencing, to extract meaningful insights from the collected data.
To ensure responsible data management, the project adheres to a data manifesto ratified by all participating administrations. This manifesto establishes data as a public good, guaranteeing its production and free access. It also sets data governance standards for collection, storage, processing and deletion, upholding cybersecurity and personal data protection. Ultimately, the Data-Driven Justice project aims to leverage data for a more efficient, transparent and citizen-centric justice system.