That digital transformation can reconfigure institutions, improve public services, and, above all, bring the State closer to its citizens is almost self-evident. But when innovation enters the realm of justice, it takes on a deeper meaning: it is not only about modernizing processes, but about redefining the relationship between society, rights, and democracy.

Brazil—home to 94 judicial courts and profound structural challenges—has achieved a transformation in access to justice that is arguably unparalleled globally. From the first law on the digitalization of judicial processes in 2006 (Law No. 11.419) to the launch of the Jus.br portal in 2024, the National Council of Justice (CNJ), with UNDP’s support through the Justice 4.0 project, has digitally transformed 365 million judicial cases. This shift is key to building a justice system that is more efficient, transparent, and closer to people.

The results speak for themselves: 100% integration of the 94 courts, 100% connection of 221 data sources, 98% adoption of notification services, and 97% use of single sign-on. Brazil’s experience in digital transformation and innovation in judicial services is now attracting attention beyond its borders.

On two occasions in 2025 (May 27–29 and October 13–15), representatives from Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Mozambique, and Ecuador gathered in Brasília to exchange good practices and lessons learned. These countries shared their own experiences, demonstrating the real possibility of generating collective intelligence, exploring cooperation models, and asking a critical question: To what extent can technology break historical barriers to access to justice in the Global South?

The presentation of the Jus.br portal—bringing together tools developed by CNJ since 2006 and especially those created through cooperation with UNDP since 2021—was received not only as a technological innovation but also as a political and institutional milestone. After all, what does it mean to build a single national interface that articulates the entire Judiciary? In this context, technology ceases to be an end in itself and becomes an instrument—or rather, a space for innovation about the kind of justice we want to build.

Delegations identified four key principles for implementing the program: preventing technological dependency by avoiding reliance on a single large server for maintenance; adopting open-source code to position the initiative as a public policy; ensuring sustainability and security through knowledge transfer; and nationalizing good ideas by creating interfaces and methodologies that allow regional tools to scale nationally.

The exchange highlighted diverse progress across countries. Uruguay is advancing toward creating a Ministry of Justice. Paraguay is strengthening strategic planning and infrastructure for access to justice with a strong digital focus. Mozambique is transferring solutions from Brazil to reinforce infrastructure and systems. The Dominican Republic carried out its first Justice Futures exercise. Peru is bridging digital transition with community justice. Colombia faces significant institutional changes and challenges. Ecuador sees international cooperation as a lever for accelerating structural digital transformations.

From a regional perspective, these experiences reveal common frameworks and phases of digital transition. Each country faces the same dilemma: How to move beyond isolated pilot projects to build sustainable State policies aligned with contemporary challenges and scaled nationally?

Perhaps the most stimulating aspect of the mission was reflecting on Brazil’s cooperation model. The fact that Justice 4.0 was designed within a development cooperation logic, in partnership with UNDP, raises crucial questions: What role should international cooperation play in shaping judicial public policies? How can open-source projects safeguard the public nature of platforms essential for guaranteeing fundamental rights?

Behind technical demonstrations, one truth emerged: digital transformation in justice is not about automating processes or replacing people with algorithms. It is a political decision about which values we encode in systems, workflows, and platforms. Ultimately, it is a debate about power, governance, and the model of access to justice—and democracy—we want to sustain.

What happened in Brasília was more than a conversation about technology. It was a debate on justice as a driver of development, a pillar of democracy, and a space for institutional innovation. That is the greatest lesson: digital transformation is not only about software or dashboards—it is about public policy choices centered on people. And at its core, every technological choice is also a political choice.