Judge Pope Launches Virtual Court in Superior Civil Court
Superior Court Judge Marvin Pope will be utilizing an online calendar call and online hearings attendance system for civil court during his six month residency in Buncombe County, beginning July 14. Accessible on his website at http://JudgePope.com, attending calendar call and hearings is a simple process. Lawyers can make court appearances electronically through the online platform or appear in court in person, per business as usual.
Attendance at calendar call is simple and is designed to save time and effort for both lawyers and the court. In the Virtual Court section of Judge Pope’s site, just click on “Attend Calendar Call” and fill out the short form with the same general information you might provide in person. Calendar Call can be attended electronically anytime up to midnight the day before calendar call is scheduled. Whether you attend electronically or in person, Judge Pope will confirm your scheduled hearing or trial by return email.
Hearing attendance is equally simple. Following the same instructions, fill out the form and include your argument. Briefs and memoranda of law can be uploaded using the document handler also provided. Whether you attend in person or electronically, Judge Pope will make his ruling and order by email, as well as through traditional methods pursuant to the Rules of Civil Procedure.
In order to avoid impropriety regarding ex parte communications, attorneys utilizing the online form are required to provide opposing counsel email addresses and those attorneys will be notified of online attendance at the same time Judge Pope receives notification. All information regarding attendance at calendar call or hearings will be stored and accessible from the Virtual Court section of Judge Pope’s site.
Use of Virtual Court does not override existing filing requirements in accordance with your pleadings’ certificates of service. Uploading documents through Virtual Court is tantamount to providing courtesy copies directly to the Judge for review.
Judge Pope will be refining this system as he is able to determine how lawyers are using the system and how it is affecting overall performance in Superior Court. Attorneys will be able to access this process by a password provided by Judge Pope in court.
Judge Pope welcomes feedback regarding this service. Feedback forms are available on Judge Pope’s website Feedback link. He hopes that lawyers find it saves time and resources where court communications and attendance are concerned.
