Abstract
The criminal justice process represents a domain grounded in the exercise of state authority over citizens, within which there is a constant risk of violating the fundamental rights of parties to a case and infringing upon individuals’ legitimate freedoms. Achieving balance in the distribution of power through the provision of equal conditions and effective control mechanisms can prevent potential abuses of judicial authority. Therefore, supervision and control in the realm of criminal policy occupy a position of fundamental importance.
The Third and Fourth Industrial Revolutions have initiated profound scientific and technological transformations in contemporary societies, the effects of which have become increasingly apparent within legal systems—particularly in the methods of supervision and control over judicial criminal policy. Adopting an analytical–applied approach, this study examines the role of emerging legal technologies—including case management systems, electronic litigation, online inquiries, the Integrated Information System (SAMA), and the Electronic Supervision System (SANA)—in enhancing transparency, efficiency, and accountability within Iran’s judiciary. The findings reveal that these technologies, by enabling data-driven oversight and providing secure, broad, and real-time access to case information, have created a framework for “soft control,” and, in some cases, “hard control” through the intervention of supervisory bodies. Consequently, the transition from traditional and ex post oversight models to technological and real-time mechanisms constitutes a fundamental necessity for standardizing judicial decision-making, improving the quality of judgments, and aligning them with legislative criminal policy