The judiciary will use Microsoft Teams for online hearings

In the future, the Judiciary will use Microsoft Teams for online hearings. Previously, a Cisco tool was used for this, but since the corona crisis, the judiciary has also used Skype. The latter will eventually be completely replaced by Teams.

Teams will be used from 1 December as a possible tool to conduct online hearings, the judiciary writes. It is not always used. The court itself determines whether Teams is used for an online hearing, or whether another tool is used. In addition to Teams, stakeholders can also attend a session via Cisco Meeting Server or Skype. Teams will be added every Wednesday.

The judiciary mentions several advantages of Teams, but user-friendliness in particular plays a role. “This way, more participants in an online session are in the picture at the same time. They also do not have to download anything in advance and they do not need their own Teams account. Many people already know Teams from their work or private situation,” the judiciary writes. In addition to Cisco Meeting Server, the judiciary currently also uses Skype for Web or Skype for Business. Skype will be replaced by Teams in the future, although it is not known when that will happen.

Since the corona crisis started in 2020, the Judiciary has started with online sessions. Initially, this was done out of necessity because of lockdowns and for security reasons, but it later turned out that online business also had advantages in some cases. This allowed suspects to be present more often without too much infringing on their lives, and some cases could be dealt with more quickly. Last year, the Council for the Judiciary argued that online sessions should remain possible, even after corona no longer forces them to do so.