Research

The Future Courts Research Platform supports and enables a wide variety of research subjects and projects based on the impact of technology on the court and legal systems.

The research priorities that Future Courts supports include: court technology, the jury system, court architecture and design, court processes and expert evidence.

Virtual pods

The Future Courts Platform is supporting research which is developing an immersive remote court facility.

In order to replicate the court hearing experience as closely as possible and avoid a sense of online isolation, researchers from

Australia, Canada and the US have developed a system designed to immerse the participants in the online hearing.

Rather than having all court participants appear on the one screen, these immersive court hearing 'pods' feature three screens with a camera attached to each screen. For example, the judge, prosecutor, defence (with the defendant in the same room) and witness will be able to connect from their unit to each other in order to conduct court business. A custom-made and secure ‘Zoom meeting’-style panel will ensure that the court maintains control. These pods are being  tested under lab conditions and showcased at the Monash Moot Courtroom and City Chambers.

Read Jacqui Horan's article 'What will courtroom justice look like in the future?' to find out more.

The Monash Moot Court as a Forum for Testing Courtroom Communication Strategies

The Monash Moot Court as a Forum for Testing Courtroom Communication Strategies. The Monash Moot Court is an ideal venue in which to conduct trial simulations and test for policy, advocacy and impact. The socio-legal method of trial simulations are one useful way in which the justice system can test, develop and refine evidence-based advocacy strategies.