[COVID-19] Karnataka High Court issues new SOP; only virtual hearing at principal Bench

The Karnataka High Court has issued a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to govern hearings at all its Benches from January 5 to January 14..As per the same, the principal Bench at Bengaluru will hear cases only via virtual mode during the said period. The Benches of the High Court at Dharwad and Kalaburagi will hear all cases via hybrid mode with the option for lawyers to choose between physical and online mode. In these Benches, the parties-in-person shall appear only through online mode and their physical appearance will not be permitted.Litigants and parties-in-person have been expressly barred from entering the court premises at Bengaluru, Dharwad and Kalaburagi."In the Principal Bench at Bengaluru and Benches at Dharwad and Kalaburagi, the parties-in-person and litigants are not allowed to enter the Court complex unless there is a specific order of the Court to that effect and unless a soft or hard copy of the order is shown to the security personal at the entry point," the SOP said.The link for the virtual mode will be provided in the causelist of the respective Courts and the same shall be web-hosted. Every person entering the Court premises including advocates, parties-in-person, staff members and litigants should preferably wear proper double face-masks including one N95 face mask, the SOP further said."Wearing of masks is compulsory in the Court halls, Bar Association Premises, offices as well as in the Court compound. Anybody found not wearing mask shall be immediately required to leave the premises," it stated. The staff of the High Court should wear hand gloves all the time and use sanitisers as indicated in the health advisories already issued and web-hosted on the website.Entry/access shall be provided to staff at the Principal Bench at Bengaluru only through gate number 2 and at the designated exit and entry points at Dharwad and Kalaburgi.It is pertinent to mention that the Advocate Association facilities shall not be used by the advocates at the three benches.In terms of filing, the SOP permits both e-filing and physical filing. However, litigants are encouraged to take up the former as far as possible..The SOP was issued owing to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the State, propelled by the arrival of the novel Omicron variant..A similar notification has been released for trial courts and district courts of Bengaluru, functioning in the the City Civil Court Complex and Mayo Hall Court Complex, with effect from January 5, 2022..[Read SOP].Karnataka High Court issues new SOP for hearings, asks lawyers to prefer online mode to physical mode