The Right to a Public Hearing in Criminal Cases in the Digital Age

Summary The author analyses the right to a public hearing in criminal cases in the light of the development of communication technology, the media, and the digitalization of courts. After a presentation of the current Strasburg standards he shows the competing values and the need for balance. He presents the possible solutions of preserving the right in relation to traditional hearings, hybrid hearings, virtual hearings, and online courts. It is argued that the development of different forms of remote hearings changes the perception and implementation of the right to a public hearing and that developments in technology call for limitations on the public character of hearings, rather than for increasing publicity. It was also observed that the Strasburg jurisprudence not only identifies the negative obligations of parties concerning the right, but also requires them to take some positive actions.