Attorneys and litigants now have the ability to appear remotely before Pierce County Superior Court through CourtCall Video, a private service that saves time and travel-related costs.

Superior Court began using the video service this month for approved civil, criminal and family law matters.

“We are happy to provide an additional service to attorneys and litigants that we believe will help speed processing of cases, make court appearances more convenient and reduce costs to participants,” said Presiding Superior Court Judge Ronald Culpepper.

CourtCall Video is browser-based and requires only a computer with Internet and a webcam. The company began a telephonic court appearance program in 1995 and expanded to video appearances to provide judicial officers, litigators, witnesses and jurors a convenient way to participate. There is no cost to participating courts and no equipment for courts to purchase. CourtCall’s program is voluntary and those lawyers or other remote participants who wish to use the service pay a reasonable fee to do so in order to skip an expensive trip to Court.

The CourtCall Video service adds the visual element while retaining the flexibility and portability of its telephonic appearance system.

“We always knew that video would be the next frontier,” said Mark Wapnick, CourtCall’s President, “and we are thrilled to have created a proprietary system designed specifically for Judges and lawyers.”

CourtCall has completed millions of telephonic court appearances for more than 2,500 judicial officers across North America.