A lawyer in Texas has gone viral after accidentally activating a kitten filter during virtual court proceedings.
Footage of the incident on Tuesday shows lawyer Rod Ponton struggling to remove the filter, while Judge Roy Ferguson attempted to help him.
Mr Ponton can be heard saying: “I don’t know how to remove it… but I’m prepared to go forward with it.
“I’m here live. I’m not a cat.”
A re-post of the video to Twitter now has more than six million views.
In a virtual press conference, Judge Ferguson, who recorded the Zoom call, said: “Texas judges have now held over a million virtual hearings, so you can imagine that we’ve seen it all.
“It just exemplifies what we’re all living with, you have to roll with the punches.
“Obviously it was amusing but if you watch carefully you’ll see that everyone was extremely professional.”
Judge Ferguson explained that he has seen several Zoom mishaps since beginning virtual proceedings at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, including some “colourful celebrations” from people in court.
“It can be a little dicey,” he said.
These fun moments are a by-product of the legal profession's dedication to ensuring that the justice system continues to function in these tough times. Everyone involved handled it with dignity, and the filtered lawyer showed incredible grace. True professionalism all around!
Advertisement— Judge Roy Ferguson (@JudgeFergusonTX) February 9, 2021
Judge Ferguson highlighted that what happened was a “simple mistake that could happen to any one of us” and he did not wish for people to “poke fun” at the lawyer for the mishap.
“It goes hand in hand with the legal community’s effort to continue representing their clients in these challenging times,” he said.
“During the pandemic the justice system can’t shut down… these kinds of things are going to happen when lawyers continue to represent their clients.
“I’m really proud of the lawyers for their professionalism and the way they handle these situations when they come up.”
