LexisNexis South Africa, a content and technology solutions provider for the legal and professional markets, has installed WiFi technology at the counrtry's Supreme Court of Appeal, in Bloemfontein.
To date, the company has equipped 12 South African courts with WiFi infrastructure and mobile access to legal content, including the Constitutional Court, seven High Courts and three Magistrate's Courts. The project is endorsed by the Department of Justice, and rollout began in 2012.
LexisNexis CEO Billy Last points to an international workplace productivity survey conducted by his company in 2010, which found 90% of legal professionals in SA said that not being able to access the right information at the right time was wasteful and impeded productivity.
"Legal professionals find having to do research away from court - where they spend the vast majority of their time - time-consuming. The take-up since 2012 has been significant, with many lawyers reporting they are saving valuable time and improving their legal service to clients," says Last.
The company says the Supreme Court of Appeal's WiFi hotspot will allow court users to connect to the wireless network freely, without needing a 3G network or a mobile device. They will receive daily free data bundles to access any Internet site or use their MyLexisNexis and LexisMobile accounts to access legal reference material.
Last says the WiFi project is one of several solutions by the company aimed at making the profession more efficient. Others include online research tools, digital libraries, mobile solutions and apps, as well as traditional print solutions.
The company says it also set up a digital self-help kiosk for court users at the Durban High Court and provided tech resources to more than 70 newly-qualified, previously-disadvantaged advocates, since 2012.
The 12 courts that now have LexisNexis WiFi hotspots are: the Supreme Court of Appeal, the Constitutional Court, the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court, Pretoria Magistrate's Court, Durban Magistrate's Court, North Gauteng High Court, South Gauteng High Court, Western Cape High Court, Bloemfontein High Court, Mahikeng High Court and the KwaZulu-Natal High Courts, in Pietermaritzburg and Durban.
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