Devonport lawyer Greg Richardson on Monday lamented the fact that there will be no jury trials in Tasmania until at least mid-March, per a direction from Supreme Court Chief Justice Alan Blow last week.

Mr Richardson said the delay was going to add significantly to the already heavy backlog of cases before the Supreme Court, but agreed it was the only viable option.

"The Chief Justice had absolutely no choice," Mr Richardson said.

"The decision is the only decision that could have been made. Before COVID the Supreme Court was already under incredible stress because of delays in the system.

"We lost the best part of 2020, we got a full year in last year, and we're going to lose at least one sittings if not more this year.

"The system is at breaking point, but I don't think it's anyone's fault."

Mr Richardson said it was simply not possible to force jurors to expose themselves to the risk of being isolated in a room for days at a time with a group of strangers.

"If people choose to take a risk, that is their choice, but you can't force people to come to court and then impose a risk upon them," he said.

"The delay doesn't help anybody. It is added stress on witnesses, the accused, their family and their friends.

"There's no upside, its all downside."

Despite the fact the backlog will only worsen with further delays, Mr Richardson said the proposition of judge-only trials was not justified.

In October the state government progressed legislation for such trials to occur in certain circumstances.

Earlier in 2021 Tasmanian Bar Association president Sandra Taglier said the bill was overall supported, but contained some problematic areas.

But Mr Richardson said "there will be never a justification for judge-only trials."

"I don't always agree with the results [of juries] but the result is still the right one because that is what the system allows."

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