Convenience of online court hearings hailed

Online hearings are convenient for many, despite the possibility of technical glitches, as people can attend cases from any place/emirate.”

Karim Teleb, multilingual legal consultant

Online hearings should continue even when the pandemic ends as it facilitated the entire legal process, but it should be kept as option.”

Magdy Elbery, legal consultant

People must be given an option to attend online court hearings after the pandemic, legal consultants say. Ever since the pandemic hit home, courts in Dubai and other emirates started working remotely, accepting cases online and conducting online hearings.

While there were apprehensions how the process would work, especially with judges not being able to see the complainants and defendants in person, lawyers say it has made it convenient for people as they could attend hearings from any place, even from out of the country.

Karim Teleb, multilingual legal consultant in Dubai, says after courts went online judges were able to and hear complainant and the defendant online without the need for them to attend court. He said online hearings are convenient for many, despite the possibility of technical glitches, as people can attend cases from any place, and is especially helpful if the parties are based in different emirates.

He said that while hearings in most cases can be held online, some need the parties to attend court. These include cases in the Personal Status Court, where a committee helps the two parties reach an amicable solution before submitting the case to court and criminal cases where parties must attend an investigation in person before case is submitted to court. However, in this case the hearing and sessions can be online.

He revealed that while all labor cases are held online, since many workers were not technically savvy, Al Adheed centres provide special rooms for them attend and see their cases being conducted.

Karim noted that the only negative was that with online hearings, only those involved in the case can attend and members of the public are excluded.

Another consultant echoed similar sentiments.

Magdy Elbery said while attending hearings online made the process convenient for many, if it is not as effective as attending in person in some cases. Elbery said that while complainants had to submit cases online even before the pandemic, in some cases, it is important for the judge to see and hear the complainants and defendants in person before making a decision.

Elbery believes online hearings should continue even when the pandemic ends as it facilitated the entire legal process, but it should be kept as option for parties involved. He said virtual hearings were extremely convenient for people who could attend even if they are out of the country.

This he said was a great help during the lock-down and national sterilisation programme.