Abstract
This Note argues that the Second Circuit's interpretation of Section 1782 should become the standard throughout the federal courts because it applies proper canons of statutory interpretation, adheres to the U.S. Congress' intent to provide an efficient means of assistance to participants in non-U.S. tribunals, and encourages other nations to provide similarly broad discovery requests when U.S. litigants seek evidence located abroad. Part I discusses the development of judicial assistance statutes in the United States and sets forth the U.S. congressional intent behind the enactment of Section 1782. Part I also examines the provisions of the current statute governing international judicial assistance. Part II analyzes the split within the U.S. circuit courts on whether Section 1782 contains an implied discoverability requirement. Part III argues that federal courts should adopt the Second Circuit's reasoning and not read a judicially-created barrier to discoverability into 28 U.S.C. § 1782. This Note concludes that the split in the circuit courts should be resolved in favor of the Second Circuit's approach, thereby providing non-U.S. parties a uniform rule for conducting discovery within the United States.
Recommended Citation
Peter Metis,
International Judicial Assistance: Does 28 U.S.C. § 1782 Contain an Implicit Discoverability Requirement,
18 Fordham Int'l L.J. 332
(1994).
Available at: https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/ilj/vol18/iss1/9