6 minute read
The First Judicial Circuit Implements Virtual Court
by Craig Van Brussel, Court Technology Officer
On March 11th, 2020 Chief Justice Canady entered AOSC20-12 directing chief judges to take all necessary measures to lessen the effects of the pandemics on the courts and court participants while keeping the courts open to the fullest extent consistent with public safety. In AOSC20- 13 the court ordered the suspension of all jury selection proceedings, criminal and civil jury trials and grand jury proceedings. The Chief Justice also required circuit and county courts to conduct essential proceedings, while suspending other proceedings as necessary to mitigate the potential effects of COVID-19 unless the chief judge determined that other proceedings could be conducted remotely without the necessity of inperson court appearance.
Following those orders, the First Judicial Circuit moved into the world of virtual court technology and had to quickly explore how to continue to provide court services while keeping judges, court staff and the public safe by not having them appear in person.
Because the judges already had a judicial viewer program to electronically view their cases from any location, the courts were able to quickly move work processes to the cloud, roll out video conferencing software (ZOOM), create and send out instructions and coordinate with partner agencies. All of which gave Chief Judge John Miller early options for meeting the Florida Supreme Court’s administrative order requirements. Since technical staff had already been through a large-scale digital transformation with the implementation of the judicial viewer, they had the court experience, digital skills and innovative mindset to create new virtual court processes rapidly.
During our Phase 1 response, Escambia’s remote County Arraignments was a good example of the court’s swift adjustment to the new social distancing measures. The Clerk, State Attorney and Public Defender quickly agreed to create a ZOOM courtroom model that would maintain social distancing requirements and alleviate the technical challenges for litigants. This model involved creating a physical ZOOM room in the courthouse for the public to appear in person. A large monitor was placed at the front of the courtroom, and all partner agencies dialed into the judge’s ZOOM call. Litigants were properly separated and stood at the courtroom podium as normal, while the judge, clerk, state attorney and public defender appeared on the courtroom monitor from their respective offices. During those initial hearings, the judges had access to the electronic court files via their judicial viewer, clerks had access to their case maintenance system, and the state attorneys and public defenders had access to their file systems. This early model proved virtual court was possible.
A couple of weeks later, the Office of State Courts selected ZOOM as the preferred virtual courtroom platform for all Florida courts and purchased licenses for every judge in each of the twenty judicial circuits (although circuits are still allowed to use MS Teams and other video products at their discretion). In a short time, judges and staff across the state who were accustomed to in-person court proceedings transitioned to the virtual courtroom and did so with committed effort while learning new technical skills. In the First Judicial Circuit ZOOM licenses, laptops and webcams were dispersed to judges and court staff. Training material was created and ZOOM seminars were given to make everyone proficient. In the four months since the ZOOM transition began, judges and court staff have successfully adapted to the new remote environment and have been able to keep the court system operational during these challenging times.
Many court employees are working remotely to keep court operations going. Court staff are scheduling cases, e-filing orders, handling attorney and pro se litigant calls and e-mails, handling budget matters, paying invoices and ordering pandemic supplies while working from home. At the outset of the
pandemic the court’s IT department reimaged, tested and configured dozens of laptops in preparation for the remote work demand. The court’s bandwidth was also increased to prepare for the heavy upsurge in network video traffic.
Judges across our circuit are now using ZOOM to conduct hearings in all court divisions, including first appearance, probate, adoptions and specialty courts like Drug Court and Veterans Court. Judges, magistrates and hearing officers are using ZOOM to conduct family law hearings for pro se litigants and attorney cases, child support cases, Baker Acts, Marchman Act hearings and various civil hearings. Court staff are also using ZOOM to conduct mediations. And soon traffic infraction hearings will be conducted with the Pensacola Police Department, FHP and other local sheriff and police departments by ZOOM. Juvenile judges are handling most of their dependency and delinquency dockets, including non-essential hearings, using this remote technology, with many parents appearing by iPhone. In addition to the clerks, state attorneys and public defenders, staff from other partner agencies like DCF, DJJ and Lakeview are using remote technology to appear for court hearings. ZOOM is also being used by the Court Administrator’s office to coordinate meetings for judges, conduct job interviews, coordinate staff meetings and train employees.
The courts have been using video at the jail for many years in order to minimize the risk to public safety involved with transporting inmates, so the transition to ZOOM was relatively straight forward. However, the ease with which ZOOM can be connected has allowed the courts to expand video appearance to the Road Prison and Work Release as well, with minimal cost. Hearings can now be scheduled for inmates at these locations without the need for transportation, which not only saves resources but also facilitates reducing inmate population during the pandemic.
Currently, circuit-wide, the First Judicial Circuit is conducting between 40–80 ZOOM hearings per day with an average of 500 total participants. The numbers have risen each month as the courts, attorneys and the public have settled into this new normal. Attorneys and litigants are connecting to these ZOOM hearings using all types of devices
Usage by Participants
from PCs, Macs and laptops, to iPhone, iPads and Android devices. And on August 18th the First Circuit reached its highest usage level in a single day with 1,107 participants appearing by ZOOM.
With COVID 19 the courts were forced to rollout years of innovation in just a few months, and ZOOM has proven to be surprisingly effective in certain types of proceedings. In the future it may be determined that some matters are more efficiently conducted using this technology and it will become a permanent part of the court system. In responding to the pandemic, the courts have learned some useful lessons that could transform court processes going forward, such as, in some instances, a ZOOM appearance is equivalent to seeing someone in person. And ZOOM proceedings save valuable time and resources by eliminating the time spent commuting, finding parking and entering the courthouse.
Virtual court proceedings are revealing efficiencies and convenience for all parties. Pro se litigants using ZOOM on their iPhone don’t have to take time off from work or arrange for childcare to come to court. Transportation to court, another difficulty for many people, can also be eliminated in some instances. In the long run, virtual court hearings could be beneficial for everyone’s schedules, efficiency and cost, but there is still a long way to go for the courts in terms of implementing any permanent remote procedures. The statutes and rules still need to be discussed and examined at the state level, but to date the courts have shown great flexibility using this new technology to manage the pandemic.
As for the ZOOM video conferencing program itself, it will continue to develop as all software does. One Florida judicial circuit has already taken the initiative and met with ZOOM officials to offer recommendations to make a “judicial vision” of ZOOM which will allow judges to more effectively manage litigants and evidence in the future.
