What is "in camera"

Camera \Cam"e*ra\, n.; pl. E. Cameras, L. Camerae. [L. vault, arch, LL., chamber. See Chamber.] A chamber, or instrument having a chamber. Specifically: The camera obscura when used in photography. See Camera, and Camera obscura.

Bellows camera. See under Bellows.

In camera (Law), in a judge's chamber, that is, privately; as, a judge hears testimony which is not fit for the open court in camera.

Panoramic camera, or Pantascopic camera, a photographic camera in which the lens and sensitized plate revolve so as to expose adjacent parts of the plate successively to the light, which reaches it through a narrow vertical slit; -- used in photographing broad landscapes.
--Abney.

adv. 1 In secret or in private (in an enclosed room, behind closed doors). 2 (context legal English) Without the presence of the public or the media (in court)

adv. kept private or confined to those intimately concerned; "it was discussed privately between the two men"; "privately, she thought differently"; "some member of his own party hoped privately for his defeat"; "he was questioned in private" [syn: privately, in private] [ant: publicly]

In camera (; Latin: "in a chamber") is a legal term that means in private. The same meaning is sometimes expressed in the English equivalent: in chambers.

Generally, in-camera describes court cases, parts of it, or process where the public and press are not allowed to observe the procedure or process. In-camera is the opposite of trial in open court where all parties and witnesses testify in a public courtroom, and attorneys publicly present their arguments to the trier of fact.

Entire cases may be heard in-camera when, for example, matters of national security are involved. In-camera review by a judge may be used during otherwise open trials—for example, to protect trade secrets or where one party asserts privilege (such as attorney–client privileged communications). This lets the judge review documents in private to determine if revelation of documents in open court will be allowed.

In United States courts in-camera review describes a process or procedure where a judge privately looks at confidential, sensitive, or private information to determine what, if any, information may be used by a party or made public. An in camera review may be at someone's request (such as counsel in the case), or by order of the court.

An example of "in-camera review" by the court: a defendant prosecuted for the alleged murder of a high school student asserts his was an act of self-defense, a last resort after the deceased physically assaulted the defendant. Witnesses tell investigators and lawyers that the victim "was always getting into fights in school" and frequently had to visit the principal's office. The defendant seeks to obtain the deceased's high school files to see if there's anything proving the deceased fighting at school. A party for the deceased's family might argue against disclosure on the basis that school records which are presumably private should not be provided to the defendant. While a judge might acknowledge the general presumption, the court might permit the defendant limited use at trial any school records that may establish the deceased's physically aggressive tendencies.

In this example, before allowing disclosure of files to the defendant, or for revelation of the records to the jury, the judge would "in camera" inspect the deceased's high school records to determine what records, if any, the judge will release to the defendant. Note: The judge has complete authority on an in-camera review. The judge may disallow use of some or all of the records reviewed, limit use or purpose, and to order a party to take all steps necessary to keep private and confidential the information released.

In-camera can also describe closed board meetings that cover information not recorded in the minutes or divulged to the public. Such sessions may discuss personnel, financial, or other sensitive decisions that must be kept secret (e.g., a proposed merger or strategic change the organization does not want disclosed to competitors).

In camera may also mean the portion of a graduate level thesis examination that includes only the examining committee and the student. This follows a presentation by the student that the public may attend.

In Camera were an English post-punk band, comprising David Steiner (vocals, keyboards), Andrew Gray (guitar), Pete Moore (bass), and Jeff Wilmott (drums), formed in London in 1978 and signed to the 4AD label. The band split in 1981 after releasing only one single and two EPs (the final one being released posthumously).

In Camera is the debut studio album by Arthur & Yu. It was self-released on June 19, 2007 on Hardly Art Records, which branches off Sub Pop. Stylistically, comparisons to Velvet Underground and early Luna have been drawn, with a hazy atmospheric sound present in the album.

In camera is a legal term meaning "in private".

In camera may also refer to:

• In Camera (Arthur & Yu album)
• In Camera (Peter Hammill album)
• In Camera (band), a London based post-punk band
• In Camera, a duo project of the musicians Christoph Heemann and Timo Van Luyck
• No Exit, Jean-Paul Sartre's existentialist play, as its original title Huis Clos is the French legal term for "in camera"
• In-camera effects or in-camera editing in film and video production

In Camera is the fourth solo album from the English singer-songwriter Peter Hammill. It was released in July 1974.

Much of the material was recorded in Hammill's home studio on simple four-track equipment. He then took the tapes to Trident Studios, where additional elements such as drumming from Van der Graaf Generator colleague Guy Evans, and layers of ARP 2600 analogue synthesizer were added. The album has a predominantly dark, gothic, claustrophobic feel, with the lyrics laced with apocalyptic, religious and existential imagery. "Gog" is a particularly intense and demonic song, featuring (even by Hammill's standards) strident and aggressive vocals, grandiose harmonium chords, and powerful drumming. This segués into "Magog", which is virtually a musique concrète piece of sinister drones, percussive noises, and including a ring modulated spoken vocal. Songs such as "Ferret and Featherbird" and "Again" are gentler offerings, and Hammill refers to the first as "something approaching a 'sweet' song". The album was dedicated to Hammill's brother, Andrew.