Asset Finance: Courts and Lawyers embracing Technology

As we are moving towards the second anniversary of the pandemic it is worth pausing to reflect that, after some initial reluctance, technology has been quite successfully embraced both by lawyers and also by the courts to keep the system running.

Obviously meetings between lawyers and clients have largely been replaced by virtual contact through Microsoft Teams and Zoom, but virtual contact has now taken a firm foothold in relation to the litigation process.

Mediations are now commonly done online, and in addition to substantially reducing travel costs and the cost of lawyers charging for travel time, the latest statistics suggest that the success rate of mediations has actually increased as a result of the move to the virtual process.

The specialist courts in particular have led the way in relation to virtual hearings, and most cases are now dealt with satisfactorily online, with once again a marked benefit in savings in relation to the fact that lawyers no longer have to travel.

The view amongst most lawyers is that whilst after the pandemic has ended there will be some return to face-to-face meetings and court hearings, most people will be keen to retain the benefits of the virtual world which we have all experienced, particular as more professionals are likely to continue to embrace working remotely as a lifestyle choice.

Contact Bermans Asset Finance team