Testifying via video link: a view from Singapore Anil Singh Gurm v J S Yeh & Co

Abstract

ABSTRACT Courts around the world often have to balance a whole host of competing considerations in determining whether witnesses should be permitted to testify via video link. In Polanski v Condé Nast Publications Ltd [2005] UKHL 10, the United Kingdom House of Lords was narrowly split (3–2) in carrying out this difficult balancing exercise. In February 2020, the Singapore Court of Appeal had the opportunity to carry out a similar balancing exercise in Anil Singh Gurm v J S Yeh & Co [2020] SGCA 5. At that time, very little was known about the coronavirus and its potentially far-reaching impact on judicial proceedings. Now, more than a year later, as the world continues to grapple with the effects of the global coronavirus pandemic, it may well be time for a rethink of the underlying policy considerations surrounding the use of video link evidence.