Judge’s ‘efficient’ use of mobile in court

♦ A judge broke with tradition by using a mobile phone in court to solve an administrative problem. Lawyers have praised Judge Richard Todd, who had a conversation with an office clerk in a bid to avoid a delay while overseeing a High Court case.

Judge Todd accepted that using a mobile in court was “unorthodox”, but said he was trying to be efficient. He answered a call from a member of staff in a case listings office while sitting on the bench at the start of a trial involving an estranged couple in the Family Division of the High Court in London.

Barristers had wanted to find a date for another hearing. He had a conversation and made a note of a possible date, ended the call, then relayed the information to barristers.