8:30am-9:15am: livestreaming court cases

8:30am-9:15am: Evan Rosevear, a postdoctoral fellow, University of Hong Kong’s Faculty of Law

8:30am-9:15am: Grenville Cross, Senior Counsel; Professor of Law; Former Director of Public Prosecutions of Hong Kong

8:30am-9:00am: Denis Brock, a litigator and partner at O'Melveny 

9:15am-9:30am: Palace Museum new collection for CNY

9:15am-9:30am: Dr Louis Ng. Director of Hong Kong Palace Museum

On Friday's Backchat, we'll be looking at the proposal to start livestreaming court cases this year.

In a speech at the opening ceremony of the legal year, Chief Justice Andrew Cheung said the judi-ciary is “actively exploring” the idea, hoping to further “enhance the transparency” and “public confi-dence in the judicial process”.

He said not all trials, particularly those involving a jury and vulnerable witnesses, were suitable for live broadcasting, but appellate proceedings would be a good start. A working group had also been formed to examine guiding principles as well as implementation practicalities.

Other common law jurisdictions such as the United States, Britain and Australia, have already been broadcasting court proceedings online.

What do you think of the idea? What are the pros and cons? How will it affect legal proceedings in Hong Kong?

After 9.15, as the Year of Rabbit is just around the corner, we'll be looking at a Lunar New Year-related gallery at the Palace Museum.