We’ll remember the pandemic as a time when everything went online, and that includes our court system.

Brian Gaines, a political science professor at the Institute for Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois, looked into how the pandemic affected access to justice. He reports lawyers were more reluctant than court staff to innovate, but most lawyers got used to it.

Could the virtual courtroom alter the outcome of a case and leave the losing side believing they did not get a fair shake?

“So far, we don’t see a consensus on whether online favors prosecutors or defenders. The court staff might be regarded as neutral judges on that point, but they didn’t agree either. Everyone seems to agree  that online juries don’t work,” said Gaines. “So the temptation to shift toward virtual proceedings could put even more pressure on the right to a jury trial in criminal cases.”

When it’s time to return more court proceedings in person, Gaines cautions that that should be done cautiously and selectively.

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