Videoconferencing, New Public Management, and Organizational Reform in the Judiciary

Videoconference technology allows interactions between citizens and their governments to be managed without systematic co-presence. It is a relatively discrete innovation, which has been introduced into bureaucracies all over the world, but still remains underanalyzed and as a consequence, underestimated in terms of its impact. This article analyzes the introduction and institutionalization of remote hearings in French courtrooms to shed light on the emergence of videoconferencing technology as a new way of organizing trials, changing the format by which justice is carried out. The article reviews the existing literature, outlines the theoretical framework and methodology, and then presents the results, primarily concerning the history of the introduction of videoconferencing in French jurisdictions. Four main points of discussion emerge: the way in which videoconferencing is designed and the reasons put forward to justify its suitability in the judicial sector; its relationship with the efficiency programs underway in the justice system as part of wider New Public Management reform; the tensions and friction points between a pragmatic approach to innovation and the traditional judicial approach; and finally the case of personal appearance as an example of adjustments operated on judiciary standards by the introduction of videoconferencing. We close by considering videoconferencing as an instrument of public action, that is, a technological tool that has progressively realized a public policy objective, in this case reducing the need to escort detained personnel.