Virtual Hearings: Elimination of five-minute wait time before hearing

In alignment with the efficiency efforts of the NYS Workers’ Compensation Board, effective immediately, the automatic five-minute wait time for anticipated parties of interest (POIs) to sign in before a virtual hearing has been eliminated. This will provide greater time savings for all, along with real-time assistance for technical issues and language interpretation needs.

This newly adopted policy still requires Workers’ Compensation Law Judges (WCLJs) to wait for all POIs to sign in before starting a hearing. As such, we encourage all parties to sign in promptly and ensure your availability during scheduled hearing times.

• If their calendars allow, WCLJs are encouraged to wait up to 15 minutes for all POIs to sign in and display as “available” for the hearing.
• If a 15-minute delay is not possible, WCLJs will allow a five-minute grace period until all POIs have signed in and are marked “available” in the system.
• Note: A WCLJ is permitted to initiate the start of the hearing in the first five minutes to troubleshoot technical or other non-substantive issues.

More information

Visit the Virtual Hearings section of the Board’s website for more information, including step-by-step instruction for attending a hearing:

• Virtual Hearings Guide for Claimants.
• Virtual Hearings Guide for Attorneys and Other Representatives.
• Virtual Hearings Guide for Witnesses and Other Participants.