Judiciary explains media, public attendance to virtual hearings

The Judiciary has issued a media release clarifying the process behind allowing the public to attend virtual hearings and denied claims that the decision came about because of legal or public pressure.

In the release, the Judiciary said it was always the plan to include the public in the virtual court hearings on a first come, first served basis once the hearing was public.

It said the first public hearings were held on Thursday and virtual seats were provided to the media.

"The Judiciary has been determining the size and nature and identification of various virtual courtrooms, and it is unfortunate that the attorneys, who represented a particular stakeholder, did not seek the guidance of the registrar of the Supreme Court.

"The registrar would quite easily have provided the relevant information to obviate the misconception that led to the dissemination of misleading information by the stakeholder."

The Judiciary also reminded the public that emergency hearings and after-hours hearings are seldom public or advertised and that some matters are held in camera (privately) by law or by their nature.

The nature of a particular hearing is determined by a judge or judicial officer.