Electronic presentation of courtroom evidence addresses accessibility issues and provides case clarity in Singapore.
Based in Singapore, Fullerton Law Chambers LLC (FLC) is a boutique legal firm providing premier dispute resolution services. With a large litigation trial pending, the team handling this particular case soon realised that the volume and format of the document set would be problematic to present effectively in court.
Many of the documents were complex Excel spreadsheets which, when printed, would be hundreds of pages in length. The nature of such complex spreadsheets meant they were extremely difficult to navigate, with the content being very hard to analyse with any degree of accuracy.
Associate Shirlene Leong was the dedicated Associate leading the case, and explains the scale of the situation: “We had almost 20,000 documents in total, many of which wouldn’t convert very well to hard copy format for the trial. In order for us to proceed with any degree of efficiency we knew we would need to present the evidence electronically.”
So, with the trial less than 3 months away, Shirlene and her team evaluated the marketplace for suitable technology providers that could address these issues.
Streamlined, fully integrated platform
Opus 2’s successful proposal was based on its secure cloud-based electronic hearing solution, specifically designed to mirror and complement how lawyers work already. The solution comprises electronic document management and bundling, electronic presentation of evidence (EPE), realtime transcription services and remote access. “What we liked most about the Opus 2 offering was the streamlined, fully integrated platform, and the clarity of costings. We were able to tailor the solution to our exact requirements for this particular case, and the case preparation process would be less time consuming” recalls Shirlene.
With the agreement signed, and less than two months to the start of the trial, time was of the essence to upload the 20,000 documents and prepare the evidence for presentation. As part of the comprehensive onboarding process the Opus 2 team provided training for all parties involved in the case - the FLC team, the opposing party, along with the presiding officials, Judge Vinodh Coomaraswamy and his personal secretary.
“In the weeks leading up to the trial, the Opus 2 team was very proactive and accommodating to our needs, despite the tight timelines we were working to. The training tutorials we received were thorough and delivered either in-person or via video conferencing, which we all found very convenient from a scheduling perspective,” explains Shirlene.
The trial in question was Suit 285 of 2014, Cosimo Borrelli (as trustee of the SFC Litigation Trust) v Poyry Management Consulting (Singapore) PTE Ltd and 4 others. Heard at the Supreme Court of Singapore, the trial lasted 8 weeks and relied upon evidence from twelve witnesses, including two located remotely in Hong Kong and Canada.
Throughout the duration of the trial, both the witnesses and their legal representation were able to login securely and view the same documents being screened in the Courtroom. Any feedback provided to the courtroom services team was immediately taken into consideration and put into effect.
While this particular case has proven to be unique in terms of the associated scale and volume of the documentation and evidence, Shirlene is in little doubt that the Opus 2 solution would be the first choice for her and the FLC team in future matters: “To be able to present complex evidence in this way, without compromise, has been fundamental to this case and fully in line with the level of service our clients expect from us. We wouldn’t hesitate using the Opus 2 electronic hearing solution again.”
Opus 2
