Pleas heard on-line

VIRTUAL HEARINGS: set to cut delays in Manchester

Manchester Crown Court has introduced a system which allows plea and directions hearings to be heard over the Internet in the latest government effort to use IT to speed up the justice system.

The pilot allows prosecution and defence counsel to submit information for the hearing to the court on a secure Web site.

The presiding judge will then deal with the plea and directions on-line.

Traditionally, counsel have attended hearings at the court in person.

The new system is intended to cut delays and cost.

Sue Stoney, a court clerk at Stockport firm Jones Knowles Warburton, has tried the equipment and said it was 'excellent'.

'The new system will save a lot of time for lawyers and clients,' she said.

'Whenever a hearing is scheduled at the moment, the client and the lawyer accompanying them often have to spend hours waiting outside the court for what is often a five-minute hearing.'

Sara Smith, an assistant at Stockport firm Tranters which is part of the pilot, said the scheme would also help reduce security concerns.

'In hearings for high-profile cases, or cases involving a category A prisoner, huge security operations are put in place to transport them to court for a hearing where their input is minimal,' she said.

She stressed that if the virtual hearing was unsuccessful - if for example clients failed to get their instructions in on time - then they could always fall back on the safety net of a 'flesh and blood' hearing.

Victoria MacCallum