To ensure a meaningful judicial voice in the technological evolution of courts, individual judges and judiciaries need to be empowered to fully participate. Judges are not simply users of court technologies but are also experts in the range of rights issues that arise in the courtroom, the impact of the digital divide on litigants, and the rigorous, rights-based scrutiny required of emerging court technologies. Yet too often, digital technology projects are planned by IT departments, technology providers and court administrators without the expertise of judges in the design of digital transformation. Sidelining judicial perspectives runs the risk of wholescale denial of rights, increasing the vulnerability of minority communities and exposing people to data and privacy risks. Integrating judicial leadership in the implementation of new technologies can embed critical rights protections in the evolution of digital justice services.