Virtual Hearings in Agency Adjudication

The use of video teleconferencing (VTC) to conduct administrative hearings and other adjudicative proceedings has become increasingly prevalent over the past few decades due to rapid advances in technology and telecommunications coupled with reduced personnel, increased travel costs, and the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the Administrative Conference has recognized, “[s]ome applaud the use of VTC by administrative agencies because it offers potential efficiency benefits, such as reducing the need for travel and the costs associated with it, reducing caseload backlog, and increasing scheduling flexibility for agencies and attorneys as well as increasing access for parties.” At the same time, as the Conference has acknowledged, critics have suggested that the use of VTC may “hamper communication” among participants—including parties, their representatives, and the decision maker—or “hamper a decision-maker’s ability to make credibility determinations.”