At the beginning of January 2026, an IBM Garage Session with representatives of the IBM Group took place at the LegalTech Lab of the Just Transition Center (JTC) at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg.
The meeting focused on an in-depth exchange on current challenges and future perspectives of the digitalization of the judiciary, as well as on the role of LegalTech in research, teaching, and practice.
Digitalization of the Judiciary and LegalTech in Focus
The session was opened with welcoming remarks by Prof. Dr. Azar Aliyev, Academic Director of the Just Transition Center. He presented the project, explained its objectives, and outlined how the LegalTech Lab is integrated into the university’s research and teaching activities.
The initiative for the meeting came from Prof. Dr. Caroline Meller-Hannich (Chair of Civil Law, Civil Procedure, and Commercial Law). As a member of the Federal-State Reform Commission “Civil Procedure of the Future,” she has been actively engaged for many years in the digital transformation of the judiciary and the further development of civil procedural structures.
Academia Meets Technology Practice
The IBM Garage Session was also attended by Prof. Dr. Philipp Reuß (Georg August University of Göttingen) and Prof. Thomas Hoffmann (TallTech). They contributed perspectives from academia, technology development, and LegalTech practice. Together with the IBM experts, discussions centered on how technological innovations can be meaningfully integrated into legal work processes while remaining sensitive to fundamental rights and procedural requirements.
Cooperation and Innovative Teaching Formats
A key focus of the exchange was on potential areas of cooperation to further promote the digitalization of the judiciary and to advance legal education at MLU. Among other topics, joint formats in research and teaching were discussed, including workshops, courses with a LegalTech focus, and practice-oriented innovation formats.
The IBM Garage Session highlighted the great potential of deeper collaboration between universities and technology partners and provided important impetus for the future work of the JTC LegalTech Lab.
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