By Kelly Caplan
BridgeTower Media Newswires
DETROIT, MI — Courts across the state have logged more than 3,000,000 hours of Zoom hearings since proceedings moved online more than a year ago, according to the Michigan Supreme Court.
But conducting remote video hearings isn’t the only high-tech method courts have used in response to the ongoing pandemic.
The MiCourt Virtual Courtroom Directory — which allows the public to search and access live-streamed or recorded court proceedings — has been used nearly 260,000 times since its 2020 launch.
Also, YouTube videos from Michigan courts have racked up nearly 38 million views; trial court YouTube channels now have more than 110,000 subscribers. Statewide, nearly 1,000 judges and other courts officers are using Zoom licenses provided by the State Court Administrative Office.
“I am proud of how nimble, creative and dedicated Michigan judges and court staff have been in both protecting public health and keeping the doors of justice open for our entire state,” said Chief Justice Bridget M. McCormack in a release. “Working remotely has helped us transform our judiciary into a more accessible, engaged, transparent, efficient, and customer-friendly branch of government that people can trust.”
In April 2020, Van Buren Circuit Court Chief Judge Kathleen Brickley said moving courts to a virtual model was nothing short of extraordinary.
“It’s been awe-inspiring to witness court staff, attorneys, and parties ‘get it’ and run with it,” she said at the time. “It’s been messy along the way, but we have completely remodeled our courts and remodeling projects can be messy.”
One year later, Brickley said that, by offering court users the option to appear virtually, more pathways to court access have been created.
“Virtual courtrooms get us one step closer to doing what we should have been doing all along — opening the doors of the courthouse to everyone, everywhere,” she pointed out. “As courts, we want to be more than a consequence to people, we want to be a resource for them. We can’t do that if those who need us the most can’t even get in the door.”
Brickley, who presides over the women’s drug treatment court, said that while the pandemic has affected everyone, those suffering from substance abuse disorders have been hit especially hard. Even so, there is reason to celebrate.
“These women have been able to appear virtually for every court session during the pandemic,” she said. “This means they’ve maintained the relationship with the drug court treatment team, the judge, and each other. These bonds are often life-saving and would have been broken had we discontinued court. Instead, we’ve celebrated successes and held people accountable.”
Brickley added that victims of crime can appear for sentencing from the comfort and protection of their living room if they so choose.
“Virtual appearances are also less intimidating for court users, many of whom have endured trauma and abuse,” she said. “We’ve certainly had many instances of Zoom mishaps and service disruptions, and those can be frustrating for all. And, some just don’t have the ability to appear virtually. But when we balance those frustrations against improved access to justice, it’s worth it.”
A year ago, 41B District Court Administrator/Magistrate James A. McGrail said the COVID-19 crisis changed the status quo. And while some in the legal field had been resistant to adopt new technology, there was no longer the luxury of doing things the way they’d always been done.
But things have changed tremendously over the past 12 months. In fact, McGrail said his virtual court is quite possibly more efficient with the Zoom dockets than pre-COVID dockets.
“We are actually scheduling more cases per half day/docket than we were pre COVID,” McGrail said. “Our current process doesn’t even resemble what you would’ve seen a year ago. After each and every docket, we would critically look at what worked and didn’t work and make changes.”
This benefits parties to litigation and practitioners alike.
“Not only are we scheduling more cases per docket, the attorneys and litigants are spending a mere fraction of the amount of time in our virtual court than they used to spend at our physical court.
Oftentimes, the attorney and litigant spend less time in our virtual court than they would have spent previously driving to our courthouse.”
He added that, in the past year, his court has integrated text message reminders to defendants to text them the Zoom link and implemented text messaging to attorneys.
“Our attendance rate is so much higher,” he noted. “Additionally, litigants no longer need to take a half day or day off of work. They are often able to complete their hearing by just taking a break from work.”
His advice for practitioners and judges is much the same as it was a year ago.
“My advice would still be never be afraid to fail, but don’t scrap everything merely because you fail,” he explained. “Learn from those failures and make things better. I truly hope we have learned that change is good over this past year. And I hope we can continue to implement change even when it’s not forced on us due to a pandemic.”
When the pandemic began, the Michigan Supreme Court gained national recognition when it quickly pivoted to authorizing additional use of remote proceedings, provided training for judges and court staff, and implemented new technology to enhance security and access.
The court has recently updated several documents, including the “Return to Full Capacity Guide,” “Model Local Administrative Order 50: Plan to Return to Full Capacity – Phase Two – Forward,” and “Model Local Administrative Order 50: Plan to Return to Full Capacity – Phase Three – Forward.”
In addition, to virtual hearings, the high court has taken additional steps to ensure access, including:
Offering the nation’s first statewide online dispute resolution tool (MI-Resolve).
Developing a new application that enables courts to text parties regarding hearing dates and payments owed.
Protecting secure access to data for Michigan’s courts by partnering with industry to build a virtual desktop environment that allows judges and court staff to securely access case files.
Providing guidance to courts on every aspect of holding jury trials that protect public health and the rights of parties — from voir dire to verdict.
Improving access for self-represented litigants through Michigan Legal Help on issues ranging from evictions to unemployment insurance.
Last year, the State Court Administrative Office released “Michigan Trial Courts Virtual Courtroom Standards and Guidelines,” which covers core concepts to help courts manage remote proceedings, addresses the conditions outlined in AO 2020-6 — which expanded authority for judicial officers to conduct proceedings remotely — and how to troubleshoot potential technical problems.
The Virtual Courtroom Task Force — made up of 25 judges, court administrators, court clerks and county officials — helped develop the manual. The task force was chaired by Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Kathryn Viviano and gathered ideas from courts statewide.
For more information about the judicial branch’s response to COVID-19, visit www.courts.mi.gov/COVID19.
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