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The
First Remote Videoconference Hearing
between Seoul Central District Court and Jeju District
Court
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The new Civil Procedure Act allows implementation of
videoconference (VC) hearing of trials from September 30, 2016, enabling
witnesses and assessors to provide testimony without making appearance to the
courtroom.
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The VC hearing can be efficient for witnesses or assessors
who have difficulties in making appearance to the courtroom due to long geographical
distance or transportation complexities, or who are under difficult situation
to face the litigation party in person.
However, parties to the trial (plaintiff and defendant) must still be
present at the courtroom.
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Witnesses who wish to provide testimony via the VC
may go to the VC Hearing Room in the nearest court from his/her place of
residence. Assessors are allowed to
use videoconference equipment with internet connection at the place of
his/her office or residence, as well as using the VC Hearing Room of a court.
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The information communication network between the
trial courtroom and VC Hearing Room of another court or between the courtroom
and assessors’ offices allows the trial panel to look at the faces of witness
and assessor, and the witness and assessor to watch the trial panel and
parties on the VC screen during the proceeding.
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Following the revision of the Act, first VC hearing
took place on November 16, 2016 between Seoul Central District Court - where
the trial was conducted - and Jeju District Court’s VC Hearing Room.
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The VC hearing is an exemplary case of effective using
the information communication technology (ICT) to overcome the geographical
inconvenience of witness living in Jeju Island to appear in the courtroom in
Seoul.
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The high-performance VC hearing system enabled: (1) a
realistic presence of the witness through instant two-way communication,
creating an ambience as if the hearing took place in the same courtroom; (2) the
trial panel to check the facial expressions on the witness with
high-definition video transmission; and (3) to check the authenticity of
documents shared through the record viewer on e-Court system.
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The Korean courts plans to promote the use of
videoconference hearing to reduce socioeconomic cost for witnesses living in
remote locations to appear in courtrooms and to facilitate obtaining oral
statements from professionals such as medical doctors and architects who are
too busy to appear in courtrooms and preferred providing written statements.
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n Purposes
As there
have been many witnesses who can hardly appear at courtrooms for witness
examination due to health and occupational issues, trial courts were faced with
difficulties in summoning witnesses for examinations, causing delays in setting
hearing dates for many witness examinations. There also were no legal backgrounds to individually
examine civil case witnesses in separation from the litigation parties unlike criminal
case defendants. Thus, the Civil
Procedure Act was revised and came into effect on September 30, 2016 to provide
legal grounds and procedures to hold remote videoconference hearings for
witnesses and assessors.
n Expected Outcome
The
remote videoconference hearing system is expected to effectively produce the
following outcomes:
1. Contribute
to having comprehensive fact-finding proceedings through effective and thorough
evidence examinations by preventing delays or postponements in setting trial
dates;
2. Provide
appropriate support measures for witnesses who face difficulties to appear in
courtrooms or need to be examined in separation from the parties, and reduce
socioeconomic cost on witness’s long distance trip to the courthouse; and
3. Reflect
the opinions from dominant experts residing in foreign countries, based on
effective judicial cooperation between the Korean and foreign judiciaries.
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