Ernakulam Law College Students To Have Facility To Watch Live Stream Of Supreme Court & High Court Hearings On Campus

Kerala’s oldest institution of legal education which is about to celebrate 150 years of its inception, is paving the path for effectively incorporating technology into the education system. The Government Law College, Ernakulam will be inaugurating a dedicated facility for live streaming of Supreme Court and Kerala High Court proceedings at its campus on Saturday, 18th March, 2023. The venue will be inaugurated by Justice Shaji P Chaly of the Kerala High Court. The Ernakulam Law College, is the first legal education institute in the country to introduce an initiative of this kind.

The Supreme Court in its groundbreaking decision in 2018 in Swapnil Tripathi v. Union of India had ruled in favour of allowing public access to hearings of the apex court through live streaming. The Apex Court was of the view that this would form part of access to justice, which a fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21 of the constitution. The plea was filed by a student from National Law University, Jodhpur bringing to the attention of the Apex Court, the lack of practical exposure for law students to court proceedings. Up until that point, hearings of constitutional benches remained inaccessible to students, who could greatly benefit from better access to court hearings.

The e-committee of the Supreme Court has framed Model Rules for Live Streaming and Recording of Court Proceedings, 2022, with the aim of better transparency, inclusivity and access to justice. In September 2022, the Supreme Court took the historic step to commence the live-streaming of the hearings before the Constitution Benches, receiving huge public response with scores of people watching the proceedings. Subsequently, several High Courts across the country including the Kerala High Court followed suit. 

Live streaming of court proceedings is considered an extension of the principles of open courts and open justice, which is in public interest. Not only does this address the fundamental right of access to justice, but it provides law students with the much needed exposure for a more comprehensive and effective legal education. It is in this vein, that the Ernakulam Law College has set up its new facility in an attempt to channel technology to strengthen the legal education system. 

The inauguration ceremony will be held along with the convocation ceremony of the Three-Year and Five-Year LLB students graduating this year. The sitting judges of the Kerala High Court who are alumni of the college, Justice Anu Sivaraman, Justice Mary Joseph, Justice Devan Ramachandran, Justice Gopinath P, Justice M R Anitha, Justice Murali Purushothaman, Justice Viju Abraham, Justice Sophy Thomas and Justice Shobha Annamma Eapen will be present at the event. The students will be given an opportunity to interact with the judges at the event, as they set out to begin their legal career.

The venue for live streaming has been set up with the sponsorship of Musthafa and Almana, A Global Law and Consulting firm founded by Adv. Musthafa Zafeer OV and Adv. Almana Zafeer, who are alumni of the college.

The event will commence at 10:30 AM on 18th March at Legislative Assembly Hall, Government Law College, Ernakulam.