Thanks to the Covid-19 crisis, telephone hearings are currently being used for shorter court hearings.
The family courts remain open, but they are (at the time of writing this blog) not sitting for hearings in person. Instead, they are sitting remotely, sometimes by video conferencing, but usually by telephone.
So, how does a telephone hearing work?
It takes place by a telephone conference. So, the Judge, each party and each party’s barrister or solicitor join the telephone conference separately. Usually there are five people on the call.
The court office will normally arrange the telephone conference, particularly where neither party is instructing a solicitor.
The telephone hearing is conducted in the same manner as a face to face hearing. It is a formal court hearing. In particular, no one other than the court or Judge is allowed to record the call.
The tricky part is the lack of facial cues and not talking over another person on the call. The Judges are usually pretty good at telling the lawyers and parties when they want them to speak.
If you need any assistance or representation for telephone hearings, just get in touch by calling us on 0117 214 1797 or email us on office@childreninthemiddle.co.uk.