It is no surprise to see lawyers concerned with construction and IT disputes leading the way on e-disclosure issues because lawyers practising in this area and the Technology and Construction Court have long been at the forefront of developments in this area. The latest development concerns a new Guide and supporting documents. TeCSA (the Technology and Construction Solicitors Association), TECBAR and the Society for Computers and Law have worked over the past nine months to formulate and agree upon new E-Disclosure Protocol, Guidelines and Timeline. A final draft of these documents is now before the TCC judges for comment.
On 1 November, an all star line-up of speakers gather for a full-day seminar at the offices of Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP. Speakers include Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart, Chris Dale, Simon Tolson, Andrew Haslam and Michael Taylor. You can get full details here.
SCL Trustee, Clive Freedman, has been much involved in the drafting of the various darfts and the main contributor for TECBAR was Matthew Lavy, a prominent member of SCL too. The draft TeCSA E-Disclosure Protocol, TeCSA E-Disclosure Guidelines and TeCSA E-Disclosure Timeline, together with a full guide to e-disclosure prepared for TeCSA by Andrew Haslam, can be accessed from the links set out below. The first three documents incorporate the consolidated current views of all three organisations on best practice with dealing with larger document cases. The E-Disclosure Guidelines include an “introduction/commentary” that covers the practical points about how to use the Protocol on a paragraph-by-paragraph basis.
It is hoped that the drafts will be finalised before the 1 November seminar.
You can access the various drafts, perhaps to whet your appetite for the seminar, here.
