As Australian businesses and sports have had to
drastically change the way they operate, so too have Australian
courts. Globally, cases are being heard virtually, from small civil
claims in the Magistrates Court to
generation-defining decisions by the Supreme Court of the United
States.
The changes have extended to civil jury trials, which have been
indefinitely postponed in Victoria. The recent decision in
Gatto v Australian Broadcasting Corporation & Ors (No
1) [2020] VSC 420 highlights the impact of the Covid-19
pandemic on the ordinarily uncontroversial procedural request for
trial by a jury.
Background
In February 2019, the ABC published an article on its website
which made allegations as to the illegal activities of Mick Gatto
as an 'underworld figure'. In response, Mr Gatto sought
damages at the Supreme Court of Victoria for alleged
'defamatory inferences' contained in the ABC report.
