IBP asks SC to make online trial court hearings the "general rule"

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) has asked the Supreme Court to refine guidelines under general community quarantine (GCQ) to make online trial court hearings the "general rule."

"IBP seeks refinements in the Supreme Court guidelines during GCQ to make online hearings in trial courts the general rule," IBP president Domingo Egon Cayosa said in a statement on Monday.

"We support the efforts of other appellate courts towards online hearings," he added.

Initially set by the SC in authorized courts across the country, hearings through  videoconferencing will continue in GCQ areas. Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez has said more than 7,000 videoconferencing hearings were conducted in one month and more than 22,000 detainees were released during the lockdown brought about by COVID-19.

The IBP likewise welcomed the shift by the Energy Regulatory Commission, the National Labor Relations Commission, and other quasi-judicial bodies to online hearings.

"Beyond helping contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus and keeping litigants and workers in the justice sector safe, the wise use of IT promotes efficiency, accessibility, integrity, transparency, accountability and speed in the resolution of cases," the IBP chief said.

He added that other countries have computerized their justice system and turned to online proceedings "with positive results and great advantages."

"Any remaining kinks in the Philippine setting like IT hardware, training, and internet availability or speed can and should be adequately addressed," Cayosa said.

He said the Philippine justice sector should harness IT to promote the swift administration of justice and for the country to be at par with global standards and best practices. —AOL, GMA News