All court functions are now conducted remotely in New York

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New York's Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks (left) and Chief Judge Janet DiFiore (center) observed a virtual arraignment at Criminal Court in Manhattan on March 25. Photo courtesy of New York Unified Court System via AP

New York's Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks (left) and Chief Judge Janet DiFiore (center) observed a virtual arraignment at Criminal Court in Manhattan on March 25. Photo courtesy of New York Unified Court System via AP

By David Brand 

The state court system has shifted essential and emergency proceedings to phone and video conference throughout its 58 counties, completing a complete transition to remote operations in order to stop the spread of the coronavirus, Chief Judge Janet DiFiore said Monday.

DiFiore discussed the temporary change in a video message to court personnel across the state on March 30.  

“Our shift to a virtual court system has made it possible for participants in essential and emergency proceedings to appear remotely via Skype, dramatically reducing the number of people in our courthouses to protect public health and safety,” DiFiore said Monday.

The shift to video for essential and emergency proceedings comes after many other court functions have already moved to video conference, including criminal court arraignments and Family Court matters. 

Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks called the move to video the latest “unprecedented” measure in a series of efforts to “eliminate person-to-person contact in court proceedings and minimize courthouse traffic.”