A number of 'mock' remote court hearings are to be held over the next 10 days to test if the courts are ready to hear full cases remotely.
Court hearings were scaled-back at the outset of Ireland's COVID-19 restrictions last month, with only urgent hearings being held in some courthouses in a bid to ensure social distancing.
However, the Courts Service is now working to ensure as many cases as possible are heard - but only if it can be done "fairly, safely and in full compliance with Government guidance".
A platform designed for allowing remote hearings has now been successfully systems tested, and court staff, barristers and solicitors will now further test out the system with a series of mock hearings starting today across several jurisdictions.
Chief Justice Frank Clarke said: "If those hearings are conducted satisfactorily it is hoped that remote hearings of actual cases will begin early in the next legal term.
"It is envisaged that the first remote hearings will take place in the appellate courts and a gradual roll out to other jurisdictions could follow, building on the experience gained."
Mr Justice Clarke stressed that remote hearings will not be suitable for all cases, and the capacity to hold them will vary between different courts.
As a result, the President of each court will instead decide how remote hearings are handled in their own, and will soon issue "guidance or practice directions" on how the hearings will operate.
Mr Justice Clarke last week warned that "criminality and the arrest of suspects" had not ceased during the pandemic, while urgent family and childcare issues continue along with an "increase in urgent corporate insolvency matters".
He said the administration of justice remained a "vital part of the structure of the State".
