header-logo header-logo

Nuance Communications: Giving justice a voice

17 September 2021 / Inés Rivera
Issue: 7948 / Categories: Features , Profession , Technology
printer mail-detail
57453
Inés Rivera explains how speech technology is transforming policing, courts and prisons

Digitally transforming the justice system from policing right through to prisons and rehabilitation is no easy feat, but it is underway. The government reaffirmed its plans to “modernise the delivery of criminal justice and encourage greater use of technology” in the 2021 Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill – and there have already been some promising improvements.

For the police, new tools such as centralised reporting systems are lessening its enormous documentation burden, freeing up more time and resources to commit to frontline community support. For the courts, digital systems such as the Common Platform are streamlining case management to help lawyers, judges, and court staff work through a record-breaking backlog of over 450,000 criminal cases faster. And for the Prison and Probation Service, improving digital literacy is helping lower reoffending rates, and supporting better post-sentence lives for its inmates.

But for the justice system to see the full benefits of digital transformation, it’s vital to tackle the core processes that slow down productivity and hamper progress.

At every stage of the justice system, professionals are facing lengthy, manual admin processes that add hours of typing to already busy schedules. For example, there are over 100 forms that are regularly used in line with Criminal Procedure Rules. Police officers spend hours of their shift writing up incident reports and creating case files. And complicated paper forms mean prisoners often struggle to access vital education programmes and opportunities to connect with their families.

There’s no single solution that can overcome all the procedural roadblocks that slow down the justice system – but speech recognition will make a significant difference.

As the justice system digitises, legal professionals are increasingly finding themselves spending hours typing every day. For instance, a recent Nuance survey found that 80% of lawyers spend more than four hours a day typing for work.

The average typing speed is around 40 words per minute. The average speaking speed? More than three times faster at 130 words per minute.

Speech recognition lets legal professionals use voice commands to complete documentation, correspondence, digital forms, and other admin tasks quickly and easily.

To take advantage of this technology, legal professionals need a tool that can meet the high demands of the justice system. We recently launched Dragon Legal Anywhere, a solution that’s built specifically for the legal industry. Underpinned by our latest speech recognition engine, Dragon is helping professionals throughout the UK’s justice system work with more speed and efficiency.

Sitting on top of the tools and applications police, lawyers, court staff, and prison officers use every day, Dragon provides fully encrypted speech-to-text for seamless dictation and navigation. It’s up to 99% accurate out of the box, and uses AI and machine learning to dynamically adapt to users’ preferences over time.

Flexible, customisable, and based in the cloud, Dragon Legal Anywhere is ideal for professionals throughout the justice system – whether they’re dictating incident notes into report management systems or navigating the Common Platform.


Inés Rivera is responsible for product and marketing at Nuance. With a legal background and over 10 years focusing on digital marketing strategy to increase growth through integrated omni-channel programme Ines has managed teams across national and international businesses. Prior to joining Nuance, Inés has worked in the introduction and development of new products and software across different verticals.

Nuance Communications is a world leader in conversational AI innovations that brings intelligence to everyday work and life. Nuance delivers solutions that understand, analyse, and respond to people – amplifying human intelligence to increase productivity and security. With decades of domain and AI expertise, Nuance works with thousands of organisations globally across legal, health care and financial services, education, telecommunications, public services, and retail – to create stronger relationships and better experiences for their customers and workforce.
Issue: 7948 / Categories: Features , Profession , Technology
printer mail-details

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Clyde & Co—Sian Langer & Gemma Parker

Clyde & Co—Sian Langer & Gemma Parker

Firm strengthens catastrophic injury capability with partner promotions

DWF—Dean Gormley

DWF—Dean Gormley

Finance and restructuring team offering expands in Manchester with partner hire

Taylor Rose—Vicki Maflin

Taylor Rose—Vicki Maflin

Firm announces appointment of head of remortgage

NEWS
From gender-critical speech to notice periods and incapability dismissals, employment law continues to turn on fine distinctions. In his latest employment law brief for NLJ, Ian Smith of Norwich Law School reviews a cluster of recent decisions, led by Bailey v Stonewall, where the Court of Appeal clarified the limits of third-party liability under the Equality Act
Non-molestation orders are meant to be the frontline defence against domestic abuse, yet their enforcement often falls short. Writing in NLJ this week, Jeni Kavanagh, Jessica Mortimer and Oliver Kavanagh analyse why the criminalisation of breach has failed to deliver consistent protection
Assisted dying remains one of the most fraught fault lines in English law, where compassion and criminal liability sit uncomfortably close. Writing in NLJ this week, Julie Gowland and Barny Croft of Birketts examine how acts motivated by care—booking travel, completing paperwork, or offering emotional support—can still fall within the wide reach of the Suicide Act 1961
The long-awaited Getty Images v Stability AI judgment arrived at the end of last year—but not with the seismic impact many expected. In this week's issue of NLJ, experts from Arnold & Porter dissect a ruling that is ‘historic’ yet tightly confined
The UK Supreme Court may be deciding fewer cases, but its impact in 2025 was anything but muted. In this week's NLJ, Professor Emeritus Brice Dickson of Queen’s University Belfast reviews a year marked by historically low output, a striking rise in jointly authored judgments, and a continued decline in dissent. High-profile rulings on biological sex under the Equality Act, public access to Dartmoor, and fairness in sexual offence trials ensured the court’s voice carried far beyond the Strand
back-to-top-scroll