The pandemic has made videoconferencing commonplace, and many people remain wary of large gatherings. Remote testimony might appear to be a sensible compromise.

But Jeffrey L. Fisher, a law professor at Stanford, said courts should be cautious.

“Covid has taught us two lessons,” he said. “One lesson is that Zoom is a very good piece of technology that can save lots of time and expense.”

“But coming out of Covid has also taught us that Zoom is not a substitute for in-person interactions,” he continued. “If we think about all the people we’ve met during the Covid era and then finally meet face to face a year or two later, there are all kinds of things you notice and appreciate for the first time, even if you’ve had all these interactions over Zoom. That’s a powerful lesson, too.”