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The Delhi High Court has pulled up a lawyer for virtually appearing before it from a park and said hybrid courts were still courts and a decorum should be maintained.
Justice Girish Kathpalia said the lawyer even switched off his video during the course of dictation of the court's order.
When an advocate sitting in their offices want to appear through video-conferencing before different court complexes on the same day, they could assist the courts with convenience and in a better manner, the court added.
"But for that, the counsel has to understand that the decorum of the court must be kept in mind. Quite often, on account of connectivity issues at the end of counsel appearing through video-conferencing the counsel remains inaudible. Often, the video is not switched on. The hybrid courts also are courts only," it said.
The court went on, "Some advocate standing in a park with a mobile phone in his hand seeks to appear as counsel for appellants.. Even in the daily causelist of this court, specific directions to maintain decorum while appearing through video-conferencing are circulated everyday. But to no avail." It therefore directed the Delhi High Court Bar Association and bar associations of all districts of Delhi to sensitise the members on how to appear virtually in hearings.
The judge, in an order passed on January 30, said a substantial expenditure was incurred on electronic infrastructure in courts and video-conferencing was encouraged on account of the difficulty faced by lawyers in running around different court complexes in Delhi.
Refusing to mark the lawyer's appearance on the day, the court said though his conduct could result in the case's dismissal, doing so would only harm the litigant who was not at fault.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by News Agency staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)