Source: https://courtkeys.com/discovery-of-documents-in-the-district-court/
Timestamp: 2018-09-21 05:45:40
Document Index: 796927390

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 8', 'art 8', 'art 2', 'art 8', 'art 2', 'art 8', 'art 2', 'art 2']

Discovery of documents in the District Court – CourtKeys.com
Discovery of documents in the District Court
Discovery is provided for at Part 8 of the District Court Rules 2014. It is a process of identifying relevant documents to the other parties involved in a case. Many more documents than those disclosed in lists of documents exchanged with statements of claim and defence might be identified in the discovery process.
Part 8 of the District Court Rules 2014 includes a great many rules relating to discovery that are not addressed in any detail or at all here. Fundamentally, there are two types of discovery that could take place. Rules 8.7 of the District Court Rules provides for standard discovery:
Standard discovery can be a long and expensive process if, for example, all records of an organisation relating to a large project involving many staff over several years need to be accounted. Tailored discovery offers an alternative. Rule 8.8 of the District Court Rules 2014 provides:
Tailored discovery is presumed in circumstances set out at rule 8.9 of the District Court Rules 2014. Those circumstances include agreement between the parties to adopt tailored discovery rather than standard discovery. Agreeing to tailored discovery could save all parties substantial time and cost if the agreed scope of discovery is restricted to what really matters.
The parties are required to list documents identified in the course of their discovery process in an affidavit of documents in accordance with rule 8.15 of the District Court Rules 2014:
(e) list or otherwise identify the documents required to be discovered under the order in a schedule that complies with rule 8.16 and Part 2 of Schedule 9 of the High Court Rules; and
(3) The affidavit may be in form 22.
The affidavit of documents may make special provision for privileged and confidential information. Such information is referred to in the affidavit but may not necessarily have to be made available for other parties to inspect. See subpart 8 of part 2 of the Evidence Act 2006 and rule 8.28 of the District Court Rules 2014 for provisions relating to privilege and confidentiality.
3. Identify which documents may be subject to privilege or confidentiality.
See subpart 8 of part 2 of the Evidence Act 2006 and rule 8.28 of the District Court Rules 2014 for provisions relating to privilege and confidentiality.
Each discoverable document should be listed in a schedule. Particular documents need to be recorded in particular parts of the schedule as provided for by form 22 of the District Court Rules 2014. That is, of course, only insofar as that form is not amended by way of tailored discovery. The parts of the schedule as set out in form 22:
Affidavits of documents are to be filed in the District Court dealing with the court case and served on all other parties. There is no filing fee for an affidavit of documents. See those parts dealing with service for how you might go about serving an affidavit of documents on other parties to the court case.
Inspection is the next step after affidavits of documents are filed and served. Documents ‘discovered’ in an affidavit of documents are made available for ‘inspection’ by other parties to the court case. Rule 8.27 of the District Court Rules 2014 provides:
(2) Documents must be exchanged in accordance with the listing and exchange protocol in Part 2 of Schedule 9 of the High Court Rules.
(3) If a discovery order exempts a party from giving discovery and inspection electronically, that party must make the documents listed in the affidavit of documents available for inspection in hard copy form and must promptly make those documents available for copying if requested.
Note that the disk(s) may only have to go to the other parties in the court case and not the District Court itself.