Letter to the Editor

• Publication year: 2022
• Pages: 8

Letter to the Editor No. Vol. 35 No. 5 Pg. 8 Utah Bar Journal October, 2022

September, 2022 Dear Editor:

Today I received the latest issue of the Bar Journal and eagerly read Judge Fonnesbeck’s article entitled Navigating the Half-Empty/Half Full Dichotomy of Virtual Court Hearings. I very much appreciated her perspective and strongly agreed with her comments. However I believe she overlooked one important benefit of virtual court hearings, access for individuals for disabilities. Many people required to interact with the judicial system experience unique challenges when appearing in person. A virtual option may be able to resolve some of these difficulties. I for one often have a difficult time hearing everything that is being said when I appear in the courtroom because of my hearing loss. The ability to regulate the volume during a virtual hearing has helped this greatly and allowed me to better represent my clients since I can fully understand what is being said.

Another benefit to virtual hearings is the opportunity for victims to exercise their right to be present at hearings, not to mention the ability to appear and give testimony when they are subpoenaed, without endangering their physical safety. Many times I have had to escort a victim out of the courthouse after a hearing because a defendant has attempted to make contact and intimidate a victim who was present. Consequently, I would urge judges to be flexible when considering whether to allow parties to appear remotely for hearings.

A Utah Bar Member in Good Standing

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Bar Journal does not ordinarily publish anonymous letters to the editor. However, having verified the identity of the writer, the Editorial Board approved the writer’s request to remain anonymous, given the circumstances.

LETTER SUBMISSION GUIDELINES 1. Letters shall be typewritten, double spaced, signed by the author, and shall not exceed 500 words in length.

2. No one...