Date:

02/08/1999

Release Date: Monday 8 February 1999



Laptop computers and the latest courtroom technology will join judges of the Court of Appeal on the bench for the first time today. Leading to the better use of judicial time and resources, the technology will change the way hearings are conducted, according to the Chief Justice of New South Wales, The Hon J.J. Spigelman.

“Users of the court will see a marked difference in how this hearing is presented and conducted. More than 50 volumes of appeal books and approximately 11,500 pages of evidence and other documents were provided to the court on CD-ROM. Judges have been accessing this information via computers in chambers and today in the court room,” said Chief Justice Spigelman.

“The immediate benefits are quicker and more efficient management of documents at every stage of preparation and especially during the actual hearing. It’s exactly the same as any other Court of Appeal hearing, expect in electronic form. The hearing time will be significantly reduced,” he said.

“All courtrooms in the Supreme Court are capable of handling this technology. The Supreme Court is pursuing ways of increasing the use of technology to improve efficiency, reduce the length of cases and achieve savings to both parties and the court.

“The Supreme Court is committed to the application of technology and has prepared a protocol for matters listed within the Commercial Division. This protocol, developed by the division’s Commercial Users Group, have wide support across the legal profession and encourage parties to exchange electronic versions of court documents. The benefits of this approach include more efficient management and handling of information, potential cost savings to all parties and reducing the amount of time in preparing and hearing matters. Enhancing case management using electronic means continues to be explored,” said Chief Justice Spigelman.

How today’s Court of Appeal hearing will proceed
Throughout the hearing (Beach Petroleum N.L. v Abbott Tout & Ors) each judge will have access to a laptop and a large screen. The laptop will provide “real time” transcript of what is being said in the courtroom. When reference is made to a particular piece of evidence or document, this will be automatically displayed on the large screen. Judges will be able to make electronic notes on the transcript and view parts of more than one document and quickly swap between documents. Solicitors will be able to retrieve a document and put it on screen for their barrister to view. One of the solicitors will be working out of their Adelaide office and will download the proceedings as they happen. After the hearing the judges will be able to search the whole database electronically when writing their judgments.

The judges hearing the appeal are Chief Justice Spigelman and Justices Sheller and Stein.



MEDIA PLEASE NOTE: Photos of the start of proceedings will be taken by the Daily Telegraph Mirror on a pooled basis. Contact Steve Moorehouse, Deputy Photographic Editor on (02) 9288 3511 to arrange copies. ABCTV News will provide vision only footage of the start of proceedings on a pooled basis. Chiefs of staff should contact Geoff Pow at ABCTV for access to the footage.

OTHER MEDIA ENQUIRIES: Kimberley Ashbee, Public Information Officer, (02) 9230 8190.