• More than 1.13 m cases remain pending across country’s courts; some delays stretch back decades
• Judge shortages, understaffed prosecutors, limited infrastructure delay justice
• From paperless trials to e-filing, authorities betting on digitisation to modernise overburdened system
• Officials warn tech alone cannot solve crisis; long-term investment in judicial manpower critical

The Government is actively in the process of recruiting more judges to address the unprecedented legal backlog plaguing the justice system. 

The declaration comes at a critical juncture for the nation as ongoing financial constraints clash directly with the urgent necessity to expand the human capital required to dispense justice effectively.

The current legal backlog stands as a monumental bureaucratic hurdle that has constrained the efficiency of the legal sector for decades.

During the first meeting of the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Justice and National Integration, which was held in February 2025 in Parliament, the statistical scale of the issue was revealed. 

During the meeting, officials informed the committee that exactly 1,131,818 cases remained pending across the judicial system. The breakdown of these pending cases includes 5,785 in the Supreme Court, 4,572 in the Court of Appeal, 6,286 in High Courts hearing criminal cases, 6,146 in Commercial High Courts, and 27,324 in general High Courts. 

District Courts are burdened with the largest share, accounting for 262,665 pending matters, while Juvenile Magistrates’ Courts have 1,260 cases pending.

Sri Lanka currently operates with approximately 20 judges per one million citizens. This figure falls drastically short of the globally accepted threshold ratio of 40–60 judges per one million citizens required for an optimal democratic justice system. The disparity has resulted in severe systemic delays affecting civil, criminal, and commercial litigation alike. 

Speaking to The Sunday Morning about the Government’s approach to the staffing shortage, Minister of Justice and National Integration Harshana Nanayakkara said: “More judges are currently being recruited. Reaching the globally accepted threshold ratio is unlikely given our current financial status, and the recruitment process itself requires time. However, these ratios could shift with the implementation of the new digitisation programme, which is designed to make systems faster and inherently more efficient. 

“The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has yet to reach a final consensus on the matter, but active recruitment is underway, although the exact upper and lower limits remain undetermined.”

The Ministry of Justice recently publicised a recruitment drive aimed at filling approximately 4,000 vacancies across its portfolio. This initiative encompasses a significantly broader scope than just court staff, as the Minister clarified to The Sunday Morning.

“We are not recruiting for all 4,000 vacancies exclusively for the courthouses. That figure encompasses 24 departments and institutions under my purview, which includes the prisons and various other entities. The recruitment process for these positions is currently ongoing,” the Minister explained. 

Prosecutorial bottlenecks and infrastructure limits

While the Ministry of Justice focuses on judicial appointments, the prosecutorial arm of the State is facing an entirely separate crisis.

During the ministerial consultation committee meeting, the Members of Parliament (MPs) highlighted the delays within the Attorney General’s (AG’s) Department as a key bottleneck. Merely 70 Senior State Counsel are tasked with managing the entirety of criminal cases nationwide. 

The MPs emphasised during the committee meeting that these roles required extensive experience, thereby limiting the pool of qualified personnel. The situation is projected to deteriorate further with more counsels within the AG’s Department expected to depart from the department.

The AG’s Department is desperately attempting to expand its cadre to meet the demand generated by nearly 70 High Courts functioning across the country.

Attorney General Parinda Ranasinghe detailed the recent hiring metrics and the unexpected physical barriers halting further expansion. “We recently recruited 32 young State Counsel, yet we still have approximately 40 active cadre vacancies. We intend to fill these positions as quickly as possible. However, the primary obstacle is a lack of physical infrastructure to accommodate new recruits. The severe shortage of available office space is a significant challenge,” he told The Sunday Morning.

Investigative bodies frequently submit massive volumes of evidentiary material that must be processed manually. The sheer size of the files prevents rapid turnaround times for indictments and adds immense pressure to the existing legal officers.

“The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) handles the majority of grave crimes, utilising a massive force of officers conducting daily investigations. They frequently submit investigative briefs spanning multiple volumes, often totalling 1,000–1,500 pages. 

“Reading through such extensive material to prepare indictments while concurrently conducting trials is exceptionally demanding work. My officers conclude their court duties around 4 p.m., after which they must return to review files and prepare for the next day. They routinely work well past midnight to ready themselves for 10–15 trials daily, operating at their absolute maximum capacity,” he said.

Temporary courthouses and decentralisation issues

To alleviate the immediate physical space deficit within the court system, the Government has adopted a strategy of repurposing existing infrastructure. The Ministry of Justice has temporarily allocated former ministerial residences in Colombo 7 to serve as functioning court complexes. Properties located on Gregory’s Road, Wijerama Mawatha, and Stanmore Crescent have undergone the necessary modifications to host trials. 

Explaining the procedural dynamic behind these property allocations, the Minister said: “While I can confirm the number of courthouses already established, the number of future facilities remains undetermined. The ministry’s involvement begins only when the JSC formally requests a new court in a specific location. 

“Currently, we have prepared approximately eight or nine courthouses to help expedite pending cases. The JSC dictates the specific requirement and the subject matter of each court, such as designating a Commercial High Court or later converting it into a Civil High Court. We are currently utilising three former ministerial residences for this purpose. These are strictly temporary measures designed to initiate proceedings and expedite cases.”

The structural separation of these new venues away from the traditional legal hub in Hulftsdorp has introduced fresh logistical complications for the legal fraternity. Lawyers must now navigate multiple locations across the city to attend consecutive hearings, an issue acknowledged by the Attorney General.

“The current dispersion of courthouses across various locations poses a logistical challenge for both the AG’s Department and the private bar. Previously, all legal activities were centralised around Hulftsdorp. However, a major high-rise building is currently under construction to permanently house the Magistrates’ Court and the District Courts. Once that facility is fully operational, we anticipate a return to a centralised judicial system,” Ranasinghe explained.

Clearing a legacy backlog remains a long-term endeavour. The public expectation for rapid results clashes with the institutional reality of the courts, especially as the Government initiates its Anti-Corruption Action Plan 2025–2029.

“Addressing the backlog requires consultation with the JSC, as we are dealing with a systemic issue that is at least 25 years old. I do not anticipate a drastic countrywide reduction within the first year-and-a-half of this administration. While the disposal rate for criminal cases in Colombo is currently higher than in the past, we must observe trends in other regions before declaring a noticeable national decline. A problem that has compounded over a quarter of a century cannot realistically be resolved in 18 months,” the Minister said.

Digital integration and the human element

As physical expansion faces financial and spatial limits, the Judiciary has turned to technology. On 10 February, the Supreme Court officially launched a highly anticipated electronic filing portal. This platform allows legal practitioners to file cases electronically, a move designed to drastically reduce the exorbitant costs associated with printing physical appeal briefs and prevent the misplacement of crucial documents.

The digital shift reached a historic milestone on 26 March when the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka conducted its very first fully paperless trial. The proceedings involved a contempt of court hearing where charge sheets and case files were digitally signed, uploaded, and accessed in real time within the open court. 

Furthermore, the Ministry of Justice introduced a new Management Information System on 31 March to digitise the appointment of key justice-sector roles.

While the technology represents a monumental leap forward for a system historically reliant on paper, it cannot automate the core functions of a trial. The fundamental mechanisms of justice still rely heavily on human interaction and manual evaluation.

Attorney General Ranasinghe emphasised the limits of automation in the judicial process, noting: “No degree of computerisation or mechanisation can completely replace the manual work required for managing witnesses, conducting cross examinations, and analysing case files. Adequate manpower remains the only definitive solution to improving the overall efficiency of the system.”

The transition to a paperless environment requires extensive adaptation from an industry deeply entrenched in traditional methodologies. State attorneys are currently adapting to the new platforms alongside private practitioners to ensure uniformity in case management. 

Ranasinghe also detailed how State legal officers were falling in line with the new directive. “We are adapting to the new systems, just like private practitioners. We have registered for the portal because the established rules apply universally, without exception. We have aligned our processes with the instructing branch, and while there may be some initial teething problems, we will be fully compliant with the digital system very soon,” he said.

Questions regarding the maintenance, data privacy, and continuous uptime of these new digital networks often fall upon the Ministry of Justice, yet the structural hierarchy of the Government places those technical responsibilities elsewhere. 

Minister Nanayakkara clarified the administrative boundaries regarding the digital layout: “The digital infrastructure is not managed by our ministry. The e-filing process is overseen by the JSC with the assistance of telecommunication providers. We are not responsible for the maintenance or technical oversight of those networks.”

The Sunday Morning was not able to reach out to the JSC for a comment on the matter, despite multiple attempts.