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Guidance

How you can attend or access court and tribunal hearings

This guide helps you understand your rights when attending court or tribunal hearings as a member of the public.

Updates to this page

From:
HM Courts & Tribunals Service
Published:
29 December 2023
Last updated:
29 May 2024
Show all updates

  1. Easy read version of guidance has been added.

  2. Changes made to the guide, and agreed by officials and judges, are updates to the following two sections: 3.6 Using phone and laptops 3.8 Live text based communications The published guide will be updated again in the next few days to reflect updates to the following sections: 3.6 Using phone and laptops Mobile phones and other devices such as laptops can be taken into the court or the tribunal room subject to any contrary order from a judge. They cannot be used to record any audio or video of the hearing, and they must not be used to transmit any information about the hearing. If you do take a device in with you please keep it on silent or turn it off if it’s not being used to avoid disrupting proceedings. 3.8 Live text based communications (for example social media)

  3. Updated information about bringing phones and laptops to court.

  4. Added translation

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

Documents

How you can attend or access courts or tribunals

HTML

How you can attend or access courts or tribunals - accessible version

PDF, 567 KB, 8 pages

How you can attend or access courts or tribunals - easy read version

PDF, 20.2 MB, 26 pages

Details

Observe a court or tribunal hearing as a journalist, researcher or member of the public

This guide provides advice on how members of the public can access information about a court or tribunal case.

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