The Judiciary is trialling remote hearings for High Court bail proceedings. The first two hearings occurred on 12 January 2026.
The Hong Kong Judiciary has been advocating for the adoption of technology in court proceedings, including electronic filing of documents and remote hearings, and the Courts (Remote Hearing) Ordinance (Cap 654) came into force in March 2025. This provides a legal framework for conducting remote hearings.
In the past, remote hearings were mainly limited to civil and judicial review cases, but they have since been extended to criminal cases other than trials.
On 12 January 2026, the Court of First Instance held the first two remote hearings on applications for High Court Bail, where bail was previously refused.
It is hoped that such remote hearings will be normalised and expanded to other criminal proceedings very soon.
Gordon Chan, Esq
Barrister-at-law, Archbold Hong Kong Editor on Public Health, and Member of the Bar Association's Committee on Criminal Law and Procedure. Specialised in medical, technology and criminal law.
