Documentary Evidence 15th Edition

Now in its 15th edition (first published 40 years ago), Documentary Evidence prides itself on being up to date. In the fast-moving world of civil procedure, and the vast amount of caselaw on disclosure and privilege, it is rewritten on a three-year cycle.

The book is a comprehensive guide to the legal obligations of disclosure. Logically presented and lucidly written, it provides detailed analysis and sensible practical advice. Following a chronological structure, it shows when and how a practitioner should take action in relation to the obligation to disclose. It is a standard work that is often cited in court judgments.

Documentary Evidence:

• Provides a comprehensive guide to the principles, obligations and protections of disclosure, legal professional privilege and other aspects of evidence in the form of documents
• Authored by a renowned KC, provides detailed analysis, practical advice and robust views often derived from cases in which he has been personally involved
• Is regularly cited in court, most recently in Al Sadeq v Dechert LLP [2024] EWCA Civ 28, JSC Commercial Bank Privatbank v Kolomoisky [2022] EWHC 868 (Ch), and Recovery Partners GP Ltd v Rukhadze [2021] EWHC 1621 (Comm)
• Discusses in depth the key principles and problem areas of disclosure, and how to raise, or combat, the available defences against it
• Is logically structured by following in chronological order the steps taken in conducting a case, showing the practitioner when and how to take action at each stage
• Advises on how to obtain, assess and manage the documents needed and how to identify the key issues
• Discusses how practices have changed consequent to the fact that most disclosure is now electronic disclosure and the challenges and opportunities presented by this
• Analyses the extent of the powers of regulatory or public bodies to obtain or disclose documents
• Discusses how the Civil Procedure Rules have affected the position on disclosure in important respects – from pre-action protocols and powers, to objections to disclosure and inspection, to the practicalities and problem areas of CPR disclosure, to the failure and abuse of disclosure obligations
• Sets out the rights of access to documents, including those held by companies, trusts, partners, receivers and agents, as well as access to court documents, and the means by which data can be accessed
• Explains fully the multi-faceted nature of legal professional privilege – what rights different types of privilege provide, their breadth and limits, when and how to claim or waive them
• Explains the court’s power to exclude documentary evidence
• Describes the issues and obligations of confidentiality, including the development of the “collateral undertaking”, or proscriptions against the misuse of information obtained through disclosure, both prior to and under the CPR