The Supreme Court (SC) has decided to allow all trial courts nationwide to hold their hearings via videoconferencing.
In Office of the Court Administrator (OCA) Circular No. 161-2020 issued Thursday night, Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez said that “upon the approval of Chief Justice Diosdado M. Peralta, all other first and second level courts not yet authorized to conduct videoconferencing are hereby now authorized to do so, on all matters pending before them, in both criminal and civil cases, regardless of the stage of the trial, in accordance with existing circulars and guidelines.”
“Considering the successful conduct of videoconferencing hearings and the fact that all courts are already capable of conducting videoconferencing hearings through their respective Philippine Judiciary 365 Accounts, there is a need to authorize all other first and second level courts not yet authorized to conduct videoconferencing hearings to do so, in order to avoid any further delay in court action on pending cases before them,” read the circular.
Prior to the issuance of the Sept. 24 circular, the SC approved the conduct of videoconferencing hearings in 1,025 single-sala courts.
Regional trial courts are known as second level courts while first level courts are the metropolitan trial courts, municipal trial courts in cities, municipal trial courts, and municipal circuit trial courts.
Back in April, the SC issued a circular which allowed all courts in the National Judicial Region and key cities in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao to conduct pilottests of videoconferencing hearings of urgent matters involving persons deprived of liberty (PDL).
The SC issued the following month two circulars which expanded this authority to conduct video conference hearings to cover “all matters pending before (them), in both criminal and civil cases, whether newly filed or pending, regardless of the stage of trial.”
The high tribunal also issued three more circulars granting authority to more first and second level courts to conduct hearings via video conference.