The outbreak of Covid-19 is affecting litigation and arbitration in various ways, ranging from an increased use of remote hearings to general court closures, depending on the countries and institutions concerned.

The following is a brief overview of the key measures that are being taken across the world, both in general and specifically in relation to legal proceedings. It covers courts in the following countries: UK, USA, EU (France, Germany, Italy, Spain), Middle East (Dubai, Israel), Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, mainland China, Hong Kong, India and Mexico. Also included is basic information about the following international arbitral institutions: ICC, LCIA, HKIAC and SIAC.

The challenges facing everyone involved in litigation and arbitration during this period are unprecedented. As the authorities and institutions react, new measures are being put in place daily. We will update this summary to capture these changes once a week, but in the meantime if you have any specific questions regarding the impact of the measures on existing or new cases, please contact us.

UK

General measures

  • The Prime Minister has ordered the British people to stay at home, and all shops to shut except for those selling food and medicine.
  • Letters have just been sent to 1.5 million people who are particularly vulnerable, asking them to take special measures.
  • The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has also advised against non-essential travel abroad, and those who are already abroad should return to the UK as soon as possible.

Courts

  • It has been announced that the work of courts and tribunals will be consolidated into fewer buildings from 30th March.
  • The Supreme Court building has now closed for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile cases and judgment hand-downs will be conducted by video link.
  • A new Practice Direction 51Y has been introduced. This provides for private hearings to be conducted remotely (whether by video or audio) during the current health crisis.
  • The position regarding civil and family matters was clarified by the Lord Chief Justice on 23rd March. Hearings requiring the physical presence of parties and their representatives and others should only take place if a remote hearing is not possible and if suitable arrangements can be made to ensure the safety of all concerned.
  • The Lord Chief Justice has also ordered that no new trials should start in the Crown Courts, and existing jury trials should continue only "if it is safe for them to do so". Magistrates' Courts will continue to deal with urgent work.
  • The High Court and Court of Appeal are also only covering urgent work.
  • Meanwhile, the government's new Coronavirus Act provides for greater use of video/audio hearings - see this official summary.
  • Although the Royal Courts of Justice are open, manned by a skeleton staff of senior administrators, QB Masters are all working remotely from home, without much support. As a result, electronic filings have not been kept up to date.
  • In the Business & Property Courts a special protocol should be followed.
  • In Scotland, only essential civil business will be dealt with in the courts, and all hearings involving witnesses are adjourned. In the Court of Session, essential civic business is defined as: child abduction petitions, interim interdicts, and other urgent matters on cause shown (for further details, see the Court of Session's Guidance Note for Practitioners issued on 25th March). Meanwhile, business in Scotland's Sheriff Courts has been consolidated into ten Sheriff Courts.
  • For further information about Scotland, see the Covid-19 page on the official court website. For the position in England, click here.

US

General measures

  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has advised people in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut to refrain from non-essential travel outside the area for the next 14 days.
  • US citizens have been warned that if they travel outside the country, they may have to stay abroad for an indefinite period.
  • Different states have adopted specific additional measures. Several states, including New York and California, are ordering people to stay indoors.

Courts

  • In the US Supreme Court, oral arguments were postponed for the 23rd – 25th march and 30th March – 1st April sessions. The court is also closed to tourists until further notice, but the building remains open for official business.
  • Other appeal courts have introduced different measures. For example, in the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, all cases scheduled for argument during the April 2020 sitting will be conducted remotely. In addition, no physical hearings will be held during that period, and rules have been changed so that parties are no longer obliged to file paper copies of documents that have been lodged electronically.
  • Courts in most states have now suspended or cancelled jury trials.
  • A number of federal courthouses have closed, either because someone in the building had caught the virus, or because they have been shut down pre-emptively by local judges on public health grounds.
  • For more information on how the US courts are responding to the health crisis, see this page on the US Courts website.

European Union

General measures

  • The European Commission has banned foreigners from entering the Schengen zone, which compromises most EU member states as well as Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. Travel between the UK and EU will be unaffected.

Courts

  • Both the ECJ and the General Court have partially closed, and only urgent matters will be heard until further notice. All other cases due to be heard shortly will be postponed to a future date. However, the filing deadlines for cases will not change.
  • The building housing the courts will also be closed and staff will work from home.

France

General measures

  • On 17th March, France imposed a lockdown. People in France are only allowed to leave their homes for necessary activities such as shopping for food or going to work.
  • The terms of the lockdown were tightened on 23rd March.
  • France is allowing certain employers to force staff to work 60-hour weeks, despite the normal legal maximum of 35 hours.

Courts

  • On 15th March, the Justice Minister said that only "essential" litigation will proceed. That includes hearings for people in custody, urgent cases handled by judges for children and procedures related to the eviction of a violent partner.
  • On 26th March the French government published a decree extending certain deadlines.

Germany

General measures

  • The Government has advised people to stay at home and cancel any holidays. It has banned public gatherings and ordered non-essential businesses and shops to shut.

Courts

  • Germany's Federal Administrative Court has cancelled hearings from 18th March to 19th April except for urgent matters that cannot be postponed. The building is closed to the public. However, it is still possible to lodge documents.

Italy

General measures

  • The entire country is in lockdown. No one is allowed to leave their home except for work, medical reasons, or in case of emergency. It has also been recently announced that all non-essential businesses will close.

Courts

  • The justice minister has suspended all court hearings with very limited exceptions. He recommended videoconferences or other remote hearings for urgent criminal matters.

Spain

General measures

  • Spain is in lockdown after declaring a state of emergency on 14th March. People may not leave their houses except to buy essential items or to go to hospital. Only essential workers are allowed to travel to their place of work.

Courts

  • On 16th March, it was announced that proceedings would be suspended, and current deadlines would not apply, while the courts focus on essential services. However, the courts themselves will not close unless ordered to do so by the health authorities.

Middle East

Dubai

  • In Dubai, some on-shore hearings are being adjourned while others are being conducted remotely. Courts in the DIFC courts are operating almost entirely now on a remote basis.

Israel

  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption trial has been postponed until 24th May due to concerns about coronavirus. The court's work has been limited to only urgent matters.

Qatar

  • Appeal Court hearings have been suspended, as have hearings of the Court of First Instance and before specific dispute settlement committees.

Argentina

General measures

  • On 20th March, the government put the country into lockdown, which was described by the President as "social, preventive and compulsory isolation".

Courts

  • The Supreme Court of the Nation has suspended judicial activities throughout Argentina, although the courts will continue to provide a minimum level of service.

Australia

General measures

  • Australia is banning all foreigners from entering the country.
  • Further restrictions on indoor and outdoor gatherings have been introduced, and certain types of shops and other businesses have been ordered to close.
  • The Department of Foreign Affairs has also ordered Australians not to travel overseas and called for Australians abroad to return home or risk being stranded.
  • New South Wales and Victoria are particularly badly affected and have tightened their existing lockdowns.

Courts

  • The Federal Court is putting in place the technology needed to hear all trials, to the extent necessary, via videoconferencing facilities.
  • Some courts do not have online systems, but are encouraging more to be done on paper and the use of video links.

Brazil

General measures

  • Brazil has declared a state of emergency, but most general measures are being taken at state rather than federal level. However, land borders have closed now, and restrictions will be imposed on non-Brazilians entering the country through airports.

Courts

  • On 19th March the Brazilian National Council of Justice issued a resolution suspending certain activities of the Brazilian courts and all court deadline until 30th April. In addition, only urgent and exceptional matters will be handled by the courts. However, the resolution does not apply to the Supreme Federal Court or the Electoral Courts.

Canada

General measures

  • Canada has closed its borders to all foreign nationals except for US citizens. Citizens are advised against all non-essential travel.
  • Canadians returning from abroad are now obliged to self-isolate for 14 days.
  • Individual provinces have taken additional steps. For example, all non-essential businesses in Quebec have been ordered to close.

Courts

  • Most courts in Canada are offering a reduced service, dealing only with essential and urgent matters.
  • The Ministry of the Attorney General has suspended limitation periods and procedural time periods for the time being, subject to court discretion.

Chile

General measures

  • A State of Catastrophe has been declared, and the government has imposed a national curfew between 22:00 and 5:00 hours. In addition, a number of areas of the country have been quarantined.
  • Chile has closed its national borders to non-residents.
  • Individuals are required to stay in their main homes, to avoid a movement of people from the capital to the provinces.
  • Chile's constitutional referendum has been postponed.

Courts

  • The Supreme Court and Appeal Courts are still conducting some hearings in the usual way, but telephone conference calls are also being used.
  • Lower tribunals have suspended face to face hearings.

China (mainland)

General measures

  • China is relaxing travel restrictions in the province of Hubei, sending thousands of workers back to jobs at factories desperate to get production going again. The lockdown in Wuhan itself (the provincial capital) is slowly opening up.
  • China has closed its borders to all foreigners.

Courts

  • During the height of the outbreak in February, the Supreme People's Court of China ordered "courts at all levels to guide litigants to file cases or mediate disputes online, encouraging judges to make full use of online systems for litigation, including those for case filing and ruling delivery, to ensure litigants and their lawyers get better legal services and protection."
  • An online video communication system app called Yunshenpan was used in Beijing No 1 Intermediate People's Court to complete a hearing about a private loan dispute.
  • The Supreme People's Court of China has also promoted the use of 'mobile micro court' on the social media platform WeChat in 12 provinces and cities to help courts conduct trials on the Internet.
  • There are three "internet courts" in China, which handle litigation procedures online from filing a case to issuing judgment documents.

Hong Kong

General measures

  • Hong Kong has banned foreign visitors to the city, and is quarantining those people it lets in for 14 days. There is a four person limit on public gatherings, and citizens are advised against visiting the graves of their ancestors, which is the custom during Qingming (4th April).

Courts

  • Courts have generally been shut from Chinese New Year (25-28 January). However, urgent and essential court hearings and business have continued.
  • The planned general re-opening of the courts has been postponed, and is now scheduled for 6th April.
  • All Hong Kong Judiciary press releases arising from coronavirus can be accessed here.

India

General measures

  • On 24th March, Prime Minister Modi announced a 21 day national lockdown.
  • Indian citizens have been advised to avoid all travel abroad that is not strictly necessary. Meanwhile, visas for foreigners have been suspended until mid-April.

Courts

  • India's Supreme Court is only dealing with important matters, and is using video conferencing.
  • In Delhi, the High Court has suspended its activities as well as those of district courts in the capital. Many other High Courts in India have said they will only deal with urgent matters.
  • The Supreme Court has suspended limitation periods.

Mexico

General measures

  • At the national level, some flights have been suspended, and restrictions have been imposed on large gatherings. The land border with the US closed to all non-essential traffic on 21st March.
  • Further measures have been taken at the local level, for example by the mayor of Mexico City.

Courts

  • Mexico's Supreme Court initially suspended court activities from 18 March. Shortly afterwards, other federal courts did the same. The courts will, however, continue to deal with certain urgent matters, for example criminal procedures involving detained individuals.

Singapore

General measures

  • Singapore has imposed several social distancing measures on its residents, and is forbidding anyone from entering the island for a short visit.

Courts

  • The Chief Justice has announced a number of measures to safeguard the health of court users.

South Africa

General measures

  • On 15 March 2020 the South African government declared a national state of disaster. Large gatherings are prohibited, and schools are now closed, as are many restaurants and clubs. Others are subject to restricted opening hours.
  • Foreigners are banned from entering South Africa from certain countries.

Courts

  • Access to courts has been restricted. The Gauteng Division of the High Court has announced that only urgent matters will be dealt with, as well as those for which a hearing date has already been fixed.
  • Physical access to the courts has also been restricted, and it is only permitted to attend court to deal with urgent applications and certain types of proceedings.

Arbitration

ICC

  • The ICC International Court of Arbitration, which has set up a COVID-19 response group, has published a statement in which it encouraged parties and tribunals to keep appraised of developments and "consider discussing their potential impact on pending proceedings, if and when necessary".
  • It said, "With particular regard to attendance of scheduled hearings, other in-person meetings and any related travel by parties, arbitral tribunals, neutrals and others involved in pending proceedings, we urge you to consult any official recommendations or directives applicable (i) at the place of their departure and any transit points; and (ii) at the place where they will be held."
  • All hearings scheduled until the end of June in Paris or an affected area are being postponed or changed to virtual meetings.
  • On 17th March, the ICC issued an urgent communication stating that all offices of the Secretariat of the ICC Court and the ICC ADR Centre are operational and that staff members are healthy and working remotely via mobile posts.

LCIA

  • The LCIA has announced that they are still operating normally, subject to a few precautionary measures concerning, for example, the filing of Requests.

HKIAC

  • The HKIAC has made a further announcement re the measures it is taking to ensure continuity of service. These include holding a series of webinars. See above for the general measures being taken by the government of Hong Kong.

ICSID

SCC

SIAC

  • SIAC has taken a number of measures, including using split teams - one working at home while the other works in the office, before they swap around. Steps have also been taken to facilitate electronic communication/filing and the electronic payment of fees. See above for the general measures being taken by the government of Singapore.

Delos Dispute Resolution

  • Delos Dispute Resolution has produced a useful checklist on holding arbitration and mediation hearings during the outbreak.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.