The United Kingdom (UK) and Brunei share similarities in the digitisation of justice and law, said the Master of the Rolls and Head of Civil Justice in England and Wales Sir Geoffrey Vos, who is on a working visit in Brunei Darussalam.
He also gave the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in the field of law as an example of what the two countries are developing.
Sir Geoffrey said that a lawyer in private practice could utilise AI as a tool to aid in their work, such as the drafting of a contract for clients.
However, the method should not be relied upon as a whole, needing the ultimate consideration of the humans before deciding that the computer generated advice is fitting, he told the media yesterday.
Sir Geoffrey said His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam was gracious with the mutual and ongoing cooperation in the field of law between Brunei Darussalam and the UK.
Members of the media were given the opportunity to meet with Sir Geoffrey, organised by the British High Commission in Brunei Darussalam in the presence of Acting British High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam Catherine Pochkhanavala-Cleeve.
Earlier during his visit, Sir Geoffrey met with Chief Justice of the Brunei Darussalam Supreme Court Dato Seri Paduka Steven Chong Wan Oon and Attorney General Dato Seri Paduka Haji Ahmad bin Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Setia Bakti Di-Raja Dato Laila Utama Haji Awang Isa to discuss issues and exchange ideas in the field of law and justice.
Sir Geoffrey also delivered two lectures on September 18, titled, ‘Technology and Access to Justice: England and Wales’ Revolution in Dispute Resolution and the Creation of the Digital Justice System’ and on ‘The Transformation of the Legal Profession through Generative AI: Implications for Legal Service Delivery and Dispute Resolution, Including the Courts’.
Sir Geoffrey was appointed The Master of the Rolls and Head of Civil Justice in England and Wales in January.
The Master of the Rolls is the second most senior judge in England and Wales after the Lord Chief Justice. In his role as President of the Court of Appeal’s Civil Division, he is responsible for the deployment and organisation of work for judges in this division, as well as presiding in its courts and hearing complex cases across the range of civil, family, and tribunal matters.
Sir Geoffrey was educated at University College School and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. He was called to the Bar in 1977 and took silk (Queen’s Counsel) in 1993. He was appointed Justice of the High Court, assigned to the Chancery Division, in October 2009.
Additionally, he held judicial roles in overseas jurisdictions, including the Courts of Appeal in Jersey and Guernsey from 2005 to 2009 and the Court of Appeal of the Cayman Islands from 2008 to 2009. He also served as Chairman of the Bar Council in 2007 and as President of the European Network of Councils for the Judiciary from January 2015 to June 2016.
He was appointed as a Lord Justice of Appeal in 2013, and became Chancellor of the High Court of England and Wales in October 2016, where he oversaw the Business and Property Courts. – Fadley Faisal
