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going to be continued learning “Now because the technology al-
from the next year or so as we lows for so much participation it’s
have to do modified hearings and just a matter of controlling the ac-
modified trials,” said Rutgers Law The glare of immense cess and anticipating the demand,”
School professor and director of public interest and Alvarado said. “You can’t have un-
trial advocacy J.C. Lore. “There’s limited demand for all proceedings
participation is catching

going to be times when the tech- some courts and their tech but as courts anticipate it there are
nology we are depending on when infrastructure off guard, levers they can pull.”
doing these trials sometimes will and shedding light on how Those solutions include increas-
malfunction.” just much they still need to ing capacity for dialing in, having
Software hiccups are nearly un- back-up phone numbers, stream-
avoidable, added Superior Court learn. ing audio via an online portal and

of San Diego court executive offi- providing a separate number for
cer Michael Roddy. He noted his the press to dial into, which the
and other California courts have Reporters Committee for Free-
had technical issues with videoconferencing plat- dom of the Press and the Pennsylvania NewsMedia
form Microsoft Teams. Still, he noted that backups Association have requested.
and accountability are critical to allowing public ac- To be sure, courts are still on a learning curve to
cess to the courts. “You obviously want a vendor that assessing potential participation and tech needed,
is reliable and has a good track record. Sometimes it Alvardo noted.
is out of your control.” “Right now this is a new world for everyone,” he
Still, CourtCall CEO Bob Alvarado argued court said. “It’s a little difficult for courts to guess capacity
software can be leveraged at high capacity without requirements.”
disruptions. However, he said, the onus is on courts ¦

to realign their participation expectations to the I am a reporter for Legaltech News, where I cover
realities of widespread internet access and interest national and international cyber regulations and
regarding a case matter. legal tech innovations and developments.

Out of Prison and in Home Confinement,
Ex-Lawyer Jodi Zils Gagne Tells Her Side

By Robert Storace

Former Bristol attorney Jodi Zils Gagne—who It’s not something Zils Gagne, 45 and a Bristol
spent 11 months in prison for stealing $169,000 resident, will be pursuing.
from clients before being allowed in June to “I was a criminal defense attorney and the past
spend the remainder of her 46-month prison term few years of that practice was spent chasing down
under home confinement due to COVID-19—said dollars. I was constantly after clients to pay their
her days as an attorney are over. bills,” said Zils Gagne, who added that she spends
The former Bristol councilwoman and defense at- part of her days helping her husband Steve in his
torney—who spoke Tuesday on her crimes, her time real estate business. She doesn’t take a salary, and her
in prison and her life now—is eligible to apply to name isn’t on the business, but she said she would
practice law in the Nutmeg State again in 2031.
¦ Continued on PAGE 20

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