© Getty images
US Section 1782 discovery in English litigation: Janna Purdie explores controlling use after production
- Section 1782 empowers US federal district courts to compel discovery of documents, testimony (including depositions) or other evidence for use in (or in aid of) proceedings before ‘a foreign or international tribunal’.
- For parties to English proceedings, it can also shape the forensic use of evidence across related proceedings and jurisdictions.
- Material obtained under section 1782 is not automatically confined to the proceedings identified in the application.
- Protective orders need careful drafting to control later collateral use.
Section 1782 of Title 28 of the United States Code is a US statutory mechanism for obtaining evidence in aid of foreign proceedings. It allows a US federal district court to order a person who resides or is found within its district to produce documents, give evidence or provide other material for use in proceedings before a foreign or international tribunal.
For parties to English proceedings, section 1782 may be especially attractive where relevant evidence
