Advicenow has produced a useful online resource to help court and tribunal users understand more about hearings that happen by phone or video and where to go for up to date information on how the Coronavirus outbreak might affect their hearing.
In relation to court and tribunal hearings, Advicenow says:
“Since the outbreak of Coronavirus the court service is working to get a lot more hearings up and running without people needing to go to court. The situation is changing all the time so if you are expecting to have a court or tribunal hearing in the next few days, weeks or months the court will contact you by email or phone to let you know what is being arranged.
You can also find information and guidance on the gov.uk website.
The judge will decide if your hearing should happen over the phone or by video. They will take into account any problems you might face by the hearing going ahead by phone or video. So it is really important to contact the court and tell them about anything that might make a phone or video hearing difficult for you such as a disability.
If you have Coronavirus and feel you are too ill to take part in your hearing by phone or by video you need to ask the court to delay the hearing. There is information on how to do this on the gov.uk website.
If you do need to take part in a phone or video hearing working out how to use the technology may be new to you.
To join by phone or video, you will need a phone or a computer with internet access, a webcam and microphone (most laptops and all smart phones have these built in).
You will also need a quiet space where you will not be disturbed during the hearing. The court will contact you to tell you how to join the hearing.
The court service has a useful guide on what to do if your hearing has to take place by phone or video call. “
The new Advicenow resource also includes a guide to cases in the civil court and cases in the family court.
For more information see Court and tribunal hearings and Coronavirus (Covid 19) available from advicenow.org.uk.