Remote participation

Remote participation

You may need to attend or participate in a court hearing or conference renotely. This means you’ll need to attend via teleconference (phone), Virtual Meeting Rooms (VMR) or Microsoft Teams (Teams).

The judge or court or judicial officer may decide if a hearing (or ‘appearance’) will happen over the phone or by video. This might be due to an emergency event where we can’t use the courthouse, or because it is a matter that doesn’t require parties to attend in person.

You’ll be told by the court if your hearing is happening over phone or video. This will be confirmed in writing by email and will include the date and time of the hearing.

The other court participants, including the judicial officer, counsel, witnesses, victims, central registry officers (CRO) will also attend remotely.

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Improving your internet connection

Remote courts are provided over the internet. To have the best experience:

• do not use free Wi-Fi as this may not be secure and may have speed and data limits
• ensure you have a strong signal, if you’re using mobile data.

Let the court know if you don’t have access to:

• stable and consistent internet
• a computer with a webcam (either plugged or built into your computer)
• a phone.

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Rules for remote hearings

The same rules apply to a remote hearing as they would if you were appearing in person before a judge.

You must follow the below rules at all times during the hearing:

• Follow all instructions from the judge and the court taker/hearing manager
• Dress appropriately for court, just as you would if you were going to a courthouse
• No smoking or using e-cigarettes or vape pens
• No eating
• Drink water only
• Sit in a private, quiet space where you won’t be interrupted
• If using video, make sure your face is well lit and that your shoulders and face are fully visible on the screen
• You must be by yourself unless the court has given permission to have someone with you
• Do not record or take photos or videos of the hearing. This means all and any participants must:
  • not record the screen (video) or audio and must not take still photographs. This includes a prohibition on downloading or capturing, by any means, sounds or images from the video feed, whether by software or digital devices, including cell phones, and a prohibition on electronic sharing of any content from the hearing
  • not publish any report of the hearing while it is in progress. This includes publishing material on any social media platform or any other media
  • adhere to court suppression orders. This includes a prohibition on publishing information on social media.

More information about the court rules is available on the Courts of New Zealand website at the following link:

Protocol for Participation in Remote Hearings(external link)

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