Texas Court Tests Virtual Jury Trial Over Zoom [VIDEO]

Reuters reports:

With jury trials on hold throughout the United States because of the coronavirus pandemic, court officials in Texas are preparing to try something new: let jurors hear a case through Zoom.

Lawyers in an insurance dispute in Collin County District Court on Monday will present their case by videoconference, in what officials believe will be the first virtual jury trial to be held nationally amid the COVID-19 crisis.

The one-day trial, which will be streamed live on YouTube here is a so-called summary jury trial, in which jurors hear a condensed version of a case and deliver a non-binding verdict. The parties, having seen how their case could fare before a jury in a full-blown trial, will then the next day sit for mediation and try to negotiate a settlement.