Plan to webcast Ontario appeal cases delayed

TORONTO - The Ontario Court of Appeal's plan to record and broadcast selected hearings on the Internet has been temporarily delayed.

The pilot project had been set to launch today, but the court says in a release it has been postponed, noting "all parties and witnesses'' must provide their consent.

The plan to record certain hearings and make them available on line, as well as on DVD, will proceed "in the coming days,'' the court says.

The province announced in January that it was using the Appeal Court to test the concept of cameras in the courtroom.

Cameras made their debut in court at the end of January during Steven Truscott's appeal hearing.

The pilot project is part of the response to the report of the Panel on Justice and the Media.