Electronic Technology And Civil Procedure

The effect of modern and communication technology on civil procedure first appeared on the agenda of the conference organized by the International Association of Procedural Law in 1999, verifying Lord Woolf’s statement from the 90’s, that ”IT will not only assist in streamlining and improving our existing systems and process; it is also likely, in due course, itself to be catalyst for radical change as well...”. At the conference in Pecs in the autumn of 2010 participants from three continents and twenty-five countries examined all aspects of the impact of modern information technology on civil procedure beginning with the electronic submission of the application, ranging from electronic service of documents and electronic means of proof supported by modern information technology. In addition to the practical issues they discussed the possible impact of electronic procedures on traditional principles of civil procedure. The conference book contains seven main reports and eleven correferates, the foreword was written by Prof. Peter Gottwald, the President of the International Association of Procedural Law.

Greater efficiency in civil dispute resolution is very much dependent on organized but fair fact-finding. Under European law, however, no clear-cut categorisation of means of evidence exists as yet, and significantly diverging interpretations persist of what is considered 'evidence' in the sense of the foundational Council Regulation (EC) No. 1206/2001 (EER). The EER fails to provide comprehensive rules for many other aspects of evidence taking, pointing instead to national legislation for solutions. As long as evidentiary rules remain different from country to country, there is an inherent risk of conflict of laws between different systems in the course of cooperation between courts in cross-border matters, leading to mistrust amongst judiciary and other participants in the proceedings. Focusing on national rules, and using a comparative method which takes into consideration legal experiences from all legal circles in the EU, this book explains and analyses how the law of evidence works in Europe today. The authors draw on the vast base of relevant information collected in twenty-seven Member States by national reporters. Following the classical enumeration of types of evidence – production of documents, examination of witnesses, expert evidence, inspection by the judge, and examination of the parties – chapters encompass such issues and topics as the following. - judicial cooperation in cross-border cases; – general principles in evidence taking (the right to be heard, oral vs. written form, directness of evidence, burden of proof); – judges' case management powers regarding evidence; – means of evidence; – extent of influence of traditional principles and evidentiary rules on electronic evidence; – application of communication technology in cross-border proceedings; – legal costs; – language; – inadmissible evidence; and – instances in which a court can refuse a request for evidence. The authors offer well-grounded recommendations on requested judge's entitlements, direct and convenient communication, cost issues, revised provisions concerning language obstacles, unification of presumptions, and much more. Armed with the wide-ranging knowledge presented here, practitioners handling civil cases anywhere in Europe will derive great practical benefit from this book. As a masterful synthesis of how evidence is used in national courts in EU Member States, and of how that use is changing, the book will be greatly valued as a unique resource by legal scholars and academics. With featured recommendations it can contribute to the development of mutual trust among the national courts inside the EU as well as trust among policymakers and national courts.

This is the eBook of the printed book and may not include any media, website access codes, or print supplements that may come packaged with the bound book. LITIGATION PRACTICE: E-DISCOVERY AND TECHNOLOGY is a thorough introduction to the latest techniques of electronic discovery (“e-discovery”) and technology for use in civil cases from inception through trial. It offers extensive hands-on practice with several popular modern tools for office management, case management, discovery, graphic creation, and trial presentation. Each step and each category of tool is introduced through examples based on the fact pattern of a real case. A complete set of documents, reports, images, videos, and simulations are provided through the companion student site, MyLegalStudiesKit, and can be used to support student oral or multimedia presentations. The text’s instruction, tools, and resources work together to teach core concepts that can be easily adapted to any software, civil case, or law firm.

Like systems and procedures in most areas of modern society, the functioning of courts throughout the world has been enormously affected by information and communication technologies (ICT). It has become crucial for lawyers to keep pace with technical changes in judicial systems, especially in international cases where an understanding of procedural variations from one system to another could spell the difference between success and failure. This immensely valuable book has been written by experts who, in various ways, have actually been engaged in the planning and implementation of ICT in the courts of their respective countries. To ensure information that is as homogeneous as possible, and to facilitate cross-border comparisons, the authors have followed a common and detailed `blueprint' which includes a brief description of the judicial system under discussion. The papers were originally prepared for presentation at the first European Seminar on Court Technology, held in September 2000, at the Research Institute on Judicial Systems (IRSIG-CNR) in Bologna, Italy. The Seminar brought together delegates from the fifteen member countries of the European Union, the Court of Justice of the European Communities, Norway, Venezuela, and The World Bank, to discuss topics related to court technology. Overall, the book offers an in-depth, up-to-date overview of methodology, difficulties encountered, and results so far achieved in the implementation of ICT in the European judicial systems. Specific areas of court technology covered include case management systems, electronic filing, and electronic data interchange. Although the emphasis is on EU Member States, a general overview of ICT applications in some Latin American judiciaries is also provided. Justice and Technology in Europe will be of great practical value to policy makers, judges, judicial personnel, lawyers, and ICT experts, as well as to judicial administration scholars interested in ICT in the judicial systems and on the strategy and governance established to increase its diffusion.

Zwanzig Jahre nach der Verabschiedung des Amsterdamer Vertrags über die justizielle Zusammenarbeit in Zivilsachen wurden vom europäischen Gesetzgeber zahlreiche Instrumente des EU-Zivilprozessrechts entwickelt, die heute in der nationalen Rechtsprechung fest verankert sind. Diese Instrumente haben einen grenzüberschreitenden Raum der Rechtssicherheit geschaffen, dem Bürgerinnen und Bürger sowie und Unternehmen vertrauen können. Das vorliegende Buch fragt nach den "best practices" gemeinsamer Regeln und Praktiken. Inspiriert von der Verschiebung des Schwerpunkts von der Schaffung neuer Rechtsvorschriften hin zu einer Konzentration auf die konkrete Umsetzung, bietet der Band einen Überblick über einen einheitlichen europäischen Rechtsraum und seinen Regeln.

"Virtually every case today, from small claims to class actions, involves electronic information: emails, word-processing documents, spreadsheets and databases, metadata, digital photographs, and many other media. Electronic information can make or break a legal cause of action or a defence-or lead to a quick settlement."--Pub. desc.

"Pack this one in your beach bag and get ready for nonstop fun." --- Susan Mallery, New York Times bestselling author, on Barefoot in the Sand As a professional gardener, Tessa Galloway can grow anything except the one thing she wants the most - a baby. Finally ready to take a chance on single motherhood by less-than-traditional means, her world is suddenly turned upside down when a sexy, mysterious new chef is hired for the resort in Barefoot Bay. Placed in the witness protection program after identifying his wife's killer, John Brown is on the cusp of getting back the only thing that matters - his toddler twins, taken into protective custody after the high profile crime that killed their mother. But when John learns the system requires him to prove he's married and stable before he can secure his children, he escalates the growing attraction for Tessa to a full-on seduction, leading right to the altar. But when love unexpected blooms between them, will his secret be the thing that uproots their happy ending?

The growing volume of electronically stored information has led to concerns that requests for electronic discovery (e-discovery) can increase litigation costs, impose new risks on lawyers and their clients, and alter expectations about likely court outcomes. The authors provide an overview of the issues involved and outline five avenues for future research on the legal and economic implications of e-discovery.