Shirtless Lawyers, Barking Dogs Herald Courtroom of the Future

The lawyer wasn’t sure whether to rise for the judge. The hearing was by videoconference, and standing up would show only his torso. The ruling: Remain seated.

Problems big, small and ridiculous have popped up as courts practice social distancing to manage the pandemic. The Florida judge who had to remind lawyers to put on a shirt. The unmuted dog who barked up a storm at a Texas bankruptcy hearing. The British receptionist whose phone rang off the hook after officials gave out the wrong number for Julian Assange’s bail session.

This week the U.S. Supreme Court said it ...