(MINNESOTA) – Those facing court cases in Minnesota will see some changes.
All hearings in court cases will be assigned a default setting based on case type – either in-person or remote. District Courts will hold the cases according to the settings unless a judicial officer orders an exception, or a deviation plan is in place for the case.
Judges will be given the latitude to move away from the default hearing settings on a needs basis without issuing an order or providing findings of the reason. A request for an exception will be accepted an may be made by a party or the court.
Agencies, judicial districts, counties, and court divisions have the ability to request a deviation from the statewide default hearing settings under certain circumstances.
The changes are based on feedback from court users regarding the use of remote hearings by the Minnesota judicial system during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
