Oh, the foibles of virtual court hearings… they’re just another joy the COVID-19 era has brought us. The latest example of a virtual court hearing gone awry comes from the U.K., where 140 observers tuned into a hearing conducted over Microsoft Teams about whether Swindon Town football club (soccer) is part owned by sports agent Michael Standing.
Judge Iain Pester urged observers to avoid disruptions, “During this hearing if you are not making submissions please turn your microphone to mute. Experience tells us it works much, much better.” But, of course, that wasn’t to be.
One observer shared their screen, only problem? It showed the results of a Google image search for “well-endowed men.” Yikestown. The judge is said to have responded:
“I’ve got quite a strange screen at the moment. I’m wondering who’s interfering with the conduct of the court?” He continued: “I’m afraid if this goes on I’m going to say only the representatives of the parties can attend, because we can’t have a hearing like this.”
But that admonishment was ignored. As Legal Cheek describes:
The judge’s warning was ignored however, as moments later a member of the public allegedly shouted “suck my d***”. Users also continued to share pornography and other images as the hearing went on. Meanwhile, attendees were seemingly able to take control of the video call settings, with the judge and barristers muted by other users.
Further problems arose after users began making firework noises, blowing raspberries and mimicking one of the barrister’s Scottish accent. Odd behaviour was also seen in the text chat bar, after one commentator called for “#PowerOut”, while another was offering cups of tea.
Standing’s attorney, Colin West, said the hearing was “a circus.” Though he argued that open attendance should be reconsidered, the judge said he just ignored the outbreaks of impropriety and took a “soldier on” stance. Trial in the matter was scheduled for late 2021 or early 2022.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).