civil procedure rules

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Parties seeking to rely on video-link evidence should plan ahead and, where necessary, obtain local and foreign court approval.

By Dan Smith

The COVID-19 pandemic has (albeit by necessity) ushered in a move towards remote justice. The vaccine rollout continues, and as lockdown restrictions begin to ease, English courts are now considering to what extent that move towards remote justice should continue. Most likely, remote hearings will continue in appropriate cases.

Against this background, the High Court has, in a number of recent decisions, provided some timely reminders for practitioners as to (i) proper arrangements for giving video-link evidence, and (ii) the need, in some cases, to obtain foreign court permission in respect of giving video-link evidence abroad.

Two recent English cases illustrate the court’s receptiveness to disclosure orders in relation to informal communications on personal devices.

By Dan Smith and Aisling Billington

In two recent decisions, the English Court has demonstrated a pragmatic and targeted approach to ordering disclosure of material held on personal devices of third parties, and a recognition of the value of informal communications as evidence of disputed factual allegations. The decisions are discussed below.

Regardless of whether disclosure is sought under the existing provisions of the Civil Procedure Rule (CPR), or the Disclosure Pilot Scheme, the Court will apply the principle of proportionality in making or varying an order for disclosure. Notably, while the Court is mindful of the privacy rights of individuals, there is increasing recognition that work is carried out on personal electronic devices (including over more informal channels such as WhatsApp), any mingling of personal and work data will not itself be sufficient to circumvent a disclosure order.

By Oliver Browne and Hayley Pizzey

In very broad terms, parties to English litigation disclose documents that they or their opponents may want to rely upon — even if the disclosed documents are adverse to the disclosing party. Parties may seek orders for further disclosure in certain circumstances. The rules on disclosure are set out in Part 31 of the Civil Procedure Rules (the CPR) and Practice Directions 31A, 31B, and 31C (the last of which is new and applicable to competition cases only).

A recent decision in Vodafone Group Services Ltd & Ors v Infineon Technologies AG & Ors[i] highlighted some limits of further disclosure orders.

The decision

Certain Vodafone group companies have commenced a damages claim following on from a decision of the European Commission, in which the Commission found that Infineon Technologies and certain other smart card chip manufacturers had participated in a European Economic Area (EEA)-wide cartel involving the supply of smart card chips. Vodafone’s estimated damages are said to be approximately £150 million and the parties were likely to spend around £30 million in total to take the case to trial.