Concerns over inclusion of virtual courts in Judiciary Laws Amendment Bill

• Published date: 24 February 2023
• Publication title: The Zimbabwean

Concerns include whether people will be able to access the internet and participate in court proceedings. This issue was raised during the Senate's second reading of the Judicial Laws Amendment Bill last week, which also seeks to amend a number of judicial laws, including the Constitutional Court Act, Supreme Court Act, High Court Act, Labour Court Act, Administrative Court Act, Magistrates Court Act, and Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act.

Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Ziyambi Ziyambi saidthe introduction of Covid-19 posed a challenge to the conduct of trials in courts, but also provided an opportunity to synchronize trial conduct with the new Integrated Electronic Case Management System. class="wp-block-quote"The Bill before the House seeks to provide for virtual court sittings in both civil and criminal proceedings provided the parties consent to have proceedings conducted virtually and also if consent is not withheld, without reason, the presiding officers can make a ruling," Ziyambi said.

"So the law will actually allow for a scenario which is just to prevail as to whether the proceedings should proceed by way of virtual or by physical hearings." According to Ziyambi, these virtual courts will expedite access to justice and provide access to justice litigants who are outside the jurisdiction of a physical court or who are unable to physically access court.

He dismissed concerns that virtual courts might not provide accused persons and civil litigants the right to a public trial, noting that virtual courts could accommodate public access to trial more than physical courts. class="wp-block-quote"A few members of the public may be accommodated in a court gallery as opposed to a trial by zoom which can accommodate even up to 500 people," Ziyambi said.

The Bill also seeks to insert a new section to the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act, where it will provide for virtual court sittings in bail and remand other than initial remand proceedings. "This is, however, subject to the availability of facilities and also provided that the prosecutor and the accused have the right by means of the virtual procedure, to question a witness and to observe the reaction of that witness," said the minister, who urged the senators to to pass the bill and use modern technology to make sure courts dispense justice faster.

However the senators raised a number of issues. class="wp-block-quote"Will the virtual court deal with cases whether I am in...