E-Trials & Virtual Courtrooms: A possible solution to Court Lockdown
Editor: Anastasios Tsanakas, Lawyer Numerous Jurisdictions, including the Republic of Cyprus have decided as part of their measures for the prevention of Covid 19 transmission, the suspension of Court operations. Nevertheless and for obvious reasons there can be no universal lockdown to the administration of justice. A possible solution to the imposed restrictions that inhibit justice accessibility is the development and establishment of “e-trials”. In the UK, an entire trial is being conducted over Skype in a legal first that lawyers say could be a model way to ensure court business continues during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Judge, is asked to decide whether it is in the best interests of a 70 years old man that suffered a major stroke in 2016 to have the clinically assisted nutrition and hydration he receives through a tube, withdrawn. The patient’s daughter and GP disagree over his treatment and the local clinical commissioning group has asked the court to determine the c