Lord Burnett said: ‘These cases will be kept under review and the position regarding short trials will be revisited as circumstances develop.’ Trials currently underway ‘will generally proceed.’
In an earlier
update, Lord Burnett warned that ‘it is not realistic to suppose that it will
be business as usual in any jurisdiction, but it is of vital importance that
the administration of justice does not grind to a halt’.
The line from
HM Courts and Tribunals (HMCTS) until now has been that hearings will continue
as normal unless parties are advised otherwise.
Lord Burnett
said: ‘Given the rapidly evolving situation, there is an urgent need to
increase the use of telephone and video technology immediately to hold remote
hearings where possible.
‘Emergency
legislation is being drafted which is likely to contain clauses that expand the
powers in criminal courts to use technology in a wider range of hearings. The
Civil Procedure Rules and Family Procedure Rules provide for considerable
flexibility.’
Earlier this
week, the Bar Council called for a halt to jury trials.
‘Barristers up
and down the country are telling us that jurors are having to drop out of cases
because they are self-isolating or, worse, coming to court when they should
not, and thereby putting everyone’s health at risk,’ Amanda Pinto QC, Chair of
the Bar Council, said.
Louise Hodges, head of criminal litigation at Kingsley Napley, said there was ‘a lot of concern’ among those working in the criminal justice system.
‘The various
agencies are not able to provide the assurances that they have conducted proper
risk assessments or that buildings and facilities, including court rooms,
custody suites, cells or secure transport, are deep cleaned to sufficient
standards to ensure the safety of individuals. It is probably to be expected
now that non-essential trials will be delayed.’
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