ILTA WHITE PAPER: MAY 2015 WWW.ILTANET.ORG
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E-DISCOVERY/E-DISCLOSURE IN THE EU
The European Economic Area (EEA) comprises all 28 member
states and Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway, which allows those
three countries to be part of the EU's single market without further
committing them politically or financially to the European Union. The
eagle-eyed reader will have noted that Switzerland, in the heart of
continental Europe, is neither an EU nor EEA member; however, it is
part of the single market.
It is important to note a few basic misconceptions about the
European legal system:
There is no European legal system. As independent countries,
member states have their own laws and procedures. However,
there are some broad similarities in the ways these independent
countries resolve disputes through their courts.
The "U.K." is a political concept, not a legal one. The U.K. is
made up of three entirely separate jurisdictions: England and Wales,
Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Each has their own legal system.
Due to the different evolution of national laws, not every
member state has a concept of the discovery process in
litigation. Those that have adopted a common law approach
do; those following a civil law approach do not. In countries
with a civil law jurisdiction, there is no discovery expectation in the
litigation process.
The vast majority of European countries (all but four) do NOT have
a legal discovery component, which does not discharge national entities
from any discovery obligation if party to a dispute in a common law
jurisdiction or involved in a criminal or other investigation.
Legal Systems In Europe
CIVIL LAW
COMMON LAW
HYBRID OF CIVIL AND COMMON
The map below indicates the type of legal system used by individual countries within the EU.
