Ministry of Justice pilots AI to transcribe court hearings

https://letsdatascience.com/news/ministry-of-justice-pilots-ai-to-transcribe-court-hearings-879be06b

Publish Date: 2026-05-14 09:53:00

The UK Ministry of Justice has launched a study to test whether its in‑house artificial intelligence transcription tool, Justice Transcribe, can produce accurate court transcripts at lower cost, reporting by Law360 and UKAuthority shows. The pilot, led by HM Courts & Tribunals Service, will compare AI output against contracted human transcribers to assess accuracy before any wider rollout, Law360 reports. Campaigners and victims’ groups have highlighted steep fees for courtroom transcripts, with The Conversation reporting one woman was quoted £30,000 for a full trial transcript. Minister for Courts and Legal Services Sarah Sackman KC said AI could boost transparency and access to justice, and the government has already said victims will receive free transcripts of judges’ sentencing remarks from spring 2027, per UKAuthority.

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