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Television cameras are poised to enter the royal courts of justice in a move to lift the veil of secrecy that still surrounds the legal process in Britain. Senior judges have agreed to consider a pilot scheme in which an appeal hearing would be filmed next year, in the first stage of a process that could lead to the more routine presence of cameras in courtrooms. Most senior judges are against the televising of trials because they believe the camera's presence would intimidate witnesses and affect their testimony. Many, however, would have no objection to filming in the appeal courts, where there are normally no witnesses. Lord Donaldson, who as master of the rolls headed the court of appeal's civil division before his retirement, said he had an open mind about televising appeals. "There's no harm in doing a pilot. You would have to see what the result of the pilot was. "It's obviously a good idea that people should know more about the way justice is administered. You could have high-profile criminal appeals, but they would show only extracts, which would distort the thing." Civil appeals, on the other hand, would be "too boring" for viewers, he said. A Scottish court permitted filming as part of an experiment in 1992, but the project was not taken further.
Approximate Word count = 841
Approximate Pages = 3.4
(250 words per page double spaced)
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